SHED Synonyms: 86 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'shed' different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of shed are cast , discard , junk , scrap , and slough . While all these words mean "to get rid of," shed and slough imply a throwing off of something both useless and encumbering and often suggest a consequent renewal of vitality or luster. // shed a bad habit // finally sloughed off the depression

Q: When would 'cast' be a good substitute for 'shed'?

Although the words cast and shed have much in common, cast , especially when used with off, away , or out , implies a forceful rejection or repudiation. // cast off her friends

Q: When is it sensible to use 'discard' instead of 'shed'?

While the synonyms discard and shed are close in meaning, discard implies the letting go or throwing away of something that has become useless or superfluous though often not intrinsically valueless. // discard old clothes

Q: How do 'scrap' and 'junk' relate to one another, in the sense of 'shed'?

Both scrap and junk imply throwing away or breaking up as worthless in existent form. // scrap all the old ways // would junk our educational system

shed 1 of 2

verb

ˈshed

Definition of shed next

as in to peel

to cast (a natural bodily covering or appendage) aside a snake's skin doesn't grow as the snake does, so every so often the snake will shed its old skin

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in to unload

to get rid of as useless or unwanted you need to shed your old notions of propriety and have some fun for a change

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

shed

2 of 2

noun

as in hut

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How is the word shed different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of shed are cast, discard, junk, scrap, and slough. While all these words mean "to get rid of," shed and slough imply a throwing off of something both useless and encumbering and often suggest a consequent renewal of vitality or luster.

shed a bad habit

finally sloughed off the depression

When would cast be a good substitute for shed?

Although the words cast and shed have much in common, cast, especially when used with off, away, or out, implies a forceful rejection or repudiation.

cast off her friends

When is it sensible to use discard instead of shed?

While the synonyms discard and shed are close in meaning, discard implies the letting go or throwing away of something that has become useless or superfluous though often not intrinsically valueless.

discard old clothes

How do scrap and junk relate to one another, in the sense of shed?

Both scrap and junk imply throwing away or breaking up as worthless in existent form.

scrap all the old ways

would junk our educational system

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of shed

Verb

Mega social media platforms usually suffer a long death, shedding relevance and users as they’re slowly usurped by a new innovative generation of upstarts, like Facebook muscling out Myspace. —

Jessica Guynn, USA TODAY, 19 Jan. 2025 Walt Disney Imagineering will introduce a new ghostly bride using projection technology in the Haunted Mansion’s attic scene when the classic dark ride returns today, Jan. 18 after shedding its annual holiday overlay. —

Brady MacDonald, Orange County Register, 18 Jan. 2025

Noun

In the driveway of a rundown house, two soldiers work quickly under the glow of headlamps, loading weapons from a shed into the back of a battered truck. —

Brian Mann, NPR, 24 Dec. 2024 Right now, Chuck and Gail’s house still stands with its Spanish tile, twin writers’ sheds, and framed Sylvia Plath drawing, the flames stopped by the choppers’ water bombs half a block from their gate. —

Anna Journey, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for shed

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shed

Verb

The easy-to-apply wallpaper is safe to use, nice quality, and doesn’t peel or tear when applying, per reviewers.

— Kelsey Fredricks, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 Jan. 2025
For many of us stateside Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a moment to breathe and at times peel back a layer and rest.

— Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 21 Jan. 2025