shelf : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: shelf	by the DICT Development Group
3 results for shelf
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
shelf n a support that consists of a horizontal surface for holding objects a projecting ridge on a mountain or submerged under water Synonym(s): ledge, shelf
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Shelf \Shelf\, n.; pl. {Shelves}. [OE. shelfe, schelfe, AS. scylfe; akin to G. schelfe, Icel. skj[be]lf. In senses 2 & 3, perhaps a different word (cf. {Shelve}, v. i.).] 1. (Arch.) A flat tablet or ledge of any material set horizontally at a distance from the floor, to hold objects of use or ornament. 2. A sand bank in the sea, or a rock, or ledge of rocks, rendering the water shallow, and dangerous to ships. On the tawny sands and shelves. --Milton. On the secret shelves with fury cast. --Dryden. 3. (Mining) A stratum lying in a very even manner; a flat, projecting layer of rock. 4. (Naut.) A piece of timber running the whole length of a vessel inside the timberheads. --D. Kemp. {To lay on the shelf}, to lay aside as unnecessary or useless; to dismiss; to discard.
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (15Feb98) [foldoc]:
shelf A public library of {class}es for the {Eiffel} language.