shack

Meaning

Noun

1. A crude, roughly built hut or cabin.
2. Any poorly constructed or poorly furnished building.
3. (slang) The room from which a ham radio operator transmits.

Verb

To live (in or with); to shack up.

Verb

1. (obsolete) To shed or fall, as corn or grain at harvest.
2. (obsolete) To feed in stubble, or upon waste.
3. (UK, dialectal) To wander as a vagabond or tramp.
4. (US, intransitive) To hibernate; to go into winter quarters.
5. (Nigeria, slang) To drink, especially alcohol.

Adj

Alternative form of shag (“exhausted; tiring”).

Synonyms

hut

🛖

shanty

shed

hovel

cabin

barrack

cottage

hutch

barn

shelter

trail

chain

canopy

reside

lean-to

domiciliate

temporary quarters

domicile

shad

shebang

sliver

slum

small house

small room

square

squat

structure

thatch

tilt

trellis

pavillion

projecting roof

rat-trap

temporary house

dilapidated house

bivouac

booth

building

bungalow

cants

construction

🚧

cot

dump

dwelling

edifice

fabric

home

🏠

hood

house

🏠

place

Translations

Hütte

🛖

capanna

🛖

cabane

hutte

🛖

hut

casa

🛖

choza

🛖

cabana

baraque

chabola

chaumière

baracca

🛖

barak

loods

🧑‍✈️

canaba

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ʃæk/

Etymology

Unknown. Some authorities derive this word from Mexican Spanish jacal, from Nahuatl xacalli (“adobe hut”).
Alternatively, the word may instead come from ramshackle/ramshackly (e.g., old ramshackly house) or perhaps it may be a back-formation from shackly.