A shiv is a knife or makeshiftimprovised; made from whatever materials are available blade used as a weapon, especially in prisona place where people are kept after being convicted of crimes or in criminal slangvery informal words or phrases used by a particular group.
Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: accurate. Checked: 2026-10-09. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.
Pronunciation
AI-generated pronunciation audio (OpenAI).
Accent: General American English
IPA: /shiv/
Easy pronunciation: SHIV (approximate spelling).
Stress: One syllable, so the stress is on the only syllable.
Weapon sense: a homemade or hidden knife used to stab someone.
Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: inaccurate — correction needed. Checked: 2026-10-09. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.
Shiv Meaning
a homemade or hidden knife used to stab someone
Part of speech: noun
Definition: a knife used as a weapon
Example: He was caught with a shiv hidden in his jacket.
Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: accurate. Checked: 2026-10-09. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.
Common Mistakes
- People sometimes confuse shiv with a regular kitchen knife, but a shiv specifically means a weapon.
- Shiv is usually a noun in this sense, not a verb.
Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: accurate. Checked: 2026-10-09. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does shiv mean?
A shiv is a knife used as a weapon, often a homemade or concealed one.
What is a synonym for shiv?
There are no strong everyday synonyms supplied in the source data for this sense.
Is a shiv the same as a knife?
Not exactly. A shiv is a knife used as a weapon, often in a hidden or improvised form.
Reviewed with OpenAI Decisions. Assessment: accurate. Checked: 2026-10-09. AI assessment; not a guarantee of accuracy.
