Show

/ʃəʊ/ name, noun, verb, slang

name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: A play, dance, or other entertainment.
  • Grammar: show is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
  • Nearest alternatives: display, a project, accompany, accord.
  • Useful contrasts: hidden, undepicted, abandon.
  • Usage evidence: I was wondering if you were going to show up today.

How to use "show"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "show" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "show" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "show" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "show" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "show" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "display" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "show", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A play, dance, or other entertainment. countable

    "There were a thousand people at the show."

  2. 2
    Synonym of shive (“wood fragment of the husk of flax or hemp”).

    "When the flax is ſufficiently watered, it feels ſoft to the grip, and the harle parts eaſily with the boon or ſhow, which laſt is then become brittle, and looks whitiſh."

  3. 3
    an act or social event involving a public performance or entertainment wordnet
  4. 4
    An exhibition of items. countable

    "art show;  dog show"

  5. 5
    pretending that something is the case in order to make a good impression wordnet
Show 16 more definitions
  1. 6
    A broadcast program, especially a light entertainment program. countable

    "radio show;  television show"

  2. 7
    something intended to communicate a particular impression wordnet
  3. 8
    A movie. countable

    "Let's catch a show."

  4. 9
    An agricultural exhibition. Australia, New-Zealand, countable

    "I'm taking the kids to the show on Tuesday."

  5. 10
    A project or presentation. countable, uncountable

    "Let's get on with the show."

  6. 11
    A demonstration. countable

    "show of force"

  7. 12
    Mere display or pomp with no substance. (Usually seen in the phrases "all show" and "for show".) uncountable

    "I envy none their pageantry and show."

  8. 13
    Outward appearance; wileful or deceptive appearance. countable, uncountable

    "So may the outward shows be least themselves: The world is still deceived with ornament."

  9. 14
    The major leagues. countable, uncountable, with-definite-article

    "He played AA ball for years, but never made it to the show."

  10. 15
    A pale blue flame at the top of a candle flame, indicating the presence of firedamp. countable, obsolete, uncountable
  11. 16
    Pretence. archaic, countable, uncountable
  12. 17
    Sign, token, or indication. archaic, countable, uncountable
  13. 18
    Semblance; likeness; appearance. countable, obsolete, uncountable

    "Beware of the scribes,[…]which devour widows' houses, and for a shew make long prayers."

  14. 19
    Plausibility. countable, obsolete, uncountable
  15. 20
    A discharge, from the vagina, of mucus streaked with blood, occurring a short time before labor. countable, uncountable
  16. 21
    A battle; local conflict. countable, slang, uncountable

    "A subaltern, wearing a glengarry, came out of a house, playing with the nose of a shell. He walked a little way with me. “Going into the show?”"

Verb
  1. 1
    To display, to have somebody see (something). transitive

    "The car's dull finish showed years of neglect."

  2. 2
    establish the validity of something, as by an example, explanation or experiment wordnet
  3. 3
    To bestow; to confer. transitive

    "to show mercy; to show favour"

  4. 4
    indicate a certain reading; of gauges and instruments wordnet
  5. 5
    To indicate (a fact) to be true; to demonstrate. transitive

    "He draws eclectically on studies of baboons, descriptive anthropological accounts of hunter-gatherer societies and, in a few cases, the fossil record. With this biological framework in place, Corning endeavors to show that the capitalist system as currently practiced in the United States and elsewhere is manifestly unfair."

Show 17 more definitions
  1. 6
    give evidence of, as of records wordnet
  2. 7
    To guide or escort. transitive

    "Could you please show him on his way. He has overstayed his welcome."

  3. 8
    indicate a place, direction, person, or thing; either spatially or figuratively wordnet
  4. 9
    To be visible; to be seen; to appear. intransitive

    "Your bald patch is starting to show."

  5. 10
    give expression to wordnet
  6. 11
    To put in an appearance; show up. informal, intransitive

    "We waited for an hour, but they never showed."

  7. 12
    provide evidence for wordnet
  8. 13
    To have an enlarged belly and thus be recognizable as pregnant. informal, intransitive

    "Jessica: "So, um, do you think Bella's gonna be showing?" Angela: "Jess, she's not pregnant." Jessica: "Okay. Who else gets married at eighteen?""

  9. 14
    finish third or better in a horse or dog race wordnet
  10. 15
    To finish third, especially of horses or dogs. intransitive

    "In the third race: Aces Up won, paying eight dollars; Blarney Stone placed, paying three dollars; and Cinnamon showed, paying five dollars."

  11. 16
    show in, or as in, a picture wordnet
  12. 17
    To reveal one's hand of cards. intransitive

    "He called instantly but was too ashamed to show until the river."

  13. 18
    take (someone) to their seats, as in theaters or auditoriums wordnet
  14. 19
    To have a certain appearance, such as well or ill, fit or unfit; to become or suit; to appear. obsolete

    "My lord of York, it better showed with you."

  15. 20
    make visible or noticeable wordnet
  16. 21
    be or become visible or noticeable wordnet
  17. 22
    give an exhibition of to an interested audience wordnet
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname.

Synonyms

All synonyms
displaya projectaccompanyaccordaccount foraccurate model

Example

"I was wondering if you were going to show up today."

Common questions

What does "show" mean?

A play, dance, or other entertainment.

What is a synonym for "show"?

Common synonyms include: display, a project, accompany, accord, account for, accurate model.

How do you use "show" in a sentence?

I was wondering if you were going to show up today.

How do you pronounce "show"?

Pronounced /ʃəʊ/.

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English schewen, from Old English scēawian (“to look, look at, exhibit, display”), from Proto-West Germanic *skauwōn, from Proto-Germanic *skawwōną (“to look, see”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh₁- (“to heed, look, feel, take note of”); see haw, gaum, caveat, caution. Cognate with Scots shaw (“to show”), Dutch schouwen (“to inspect, view”), German schauen (“to see, behold”), Danish skue (“to behold”). Related to sheen. Wider cognates include Ancient Greek κῦδος (kûdos), Latin caveō whence English caution and caveat, Sanskrit कवि (kaví, “seer, prophet, bard”), Proto-Slavic *čuti (whence Russian чу́ять (čújatʹ) and many more).

Etymology 2

From Middle English schewe, from the verb (schewen).

Etymology 3

Variant of shove, itself a variant of shive.

More for "show"

Synonyms

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