How to pronounce "shank"

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Translator: Camille Martínez Reviewer: Krystian Aparta

There are no bad buttons, there are only bad people.

How does that sound? OK?

[Small thing.]

[Big idea.]

[Isaac Mizrahi on the Button]

No one knows who invented the button.

It might have shown up as early as 2000 BCE.

It was decorative when it first started,

just something pretty sewn onto your clothes.

Then about 3,000 years later,

someone finally invented the buttonhole,

and buttons were suddenly useful.

The button and the buttonhole is such a great invention.

Not only does it slip through the buttonhole,

but then it kind of falls into place,

and so you're completely secure, like it's never going to open.

The design of a button hasn't changed much since the Middle Ages.

It's one of the most enduring designs in history.

For me, the best buttons are usually round.

There's either a dome button with a little shank,

or there's just this sort of round thing with either a rim or not a rim,

either two holes or four holes.

Almost more important than the button is the buttonhole.

And the way you figure that out is:

the diameter of the button plus the width of the button,

plus a little bit of ease.

Before buttons, clothes were bigger --

they were more kind of amorphous,

and people, like, wriggled into them

or just kind of wrapped themselves in things.

But then fashion moved closer to the body

as we discovered uses for the button.

At one time, it was the one way to make clothes fit against the body.

I think the reason buttons have endured for so long, historically,

is because they actually work to keep our clothes shut.

Zippers break;

Velcro makes a lot of noise, and it wears out after a while.

If a button falls off, you just literally sew that thing on.

A button is kind of there for the long run.

It's not just the most elemental design ever,

it's also such a crazy fashion statement.

When I was a kid, my mom knit me this beautiful sweater.

I didn't like it.

And then I found these buttons,

and the minute the buttons were on the sweater, I loved it.

If you don't have good taste and you can't pick out a button,

then let someone else do it, you know?

I mean that.

Phonetic Breakdown of "shank"

Learn how to break down "shank" into its phonetic components. Understanding syllables and phonetics helps with pronunciation, spelling, and language learning.

Standard Phonetic Pronunciation:

/ʃæŋk/

Phonetic representation based on standard dictionaries

IPA Phonetic Pronunciation:

SH AE1 NG K

Standard phonetic transcription to help with precise pronunciation

Pronunciation Tips:

Stress the first syllable
Pay attention to vowel sounds
Practice each syllable separately

Spelling Benefits:

Easier to remember spelling
Helps with word recognition
Improves reading fluency

Definition of "shank"

Pronunciation: /ʃæŋk/

Noun

The part of the leg between the knee and the ankle.
Meat from that part of an animal.
A redshank or greenshank, various species of Old World wading birds in the genus Tringa having distinctly colored legs.
A straight, narrow part of an object, such as a key or an anchor; shaft; stem.
The handle of a pair of shears, connecting the ride to the neck.
The center part of a fishhook between the eye and the hook, the 'hook' being the curved part that bends toward the point.
A protruding part of an object, by which it is or can be attached.
The metal part on a curb bit that falls below the mouthpiece, which length controls the severity of the leverage action of the bit, and to which the reins of the bridle are attached.
A poorly played golf shot in which the ball is struck by the part of the club head that connects to the shaft.
An improvised stabbing weapon; a shiv.
A loop forming an eye to a button.
The space between two channels of the Doric triglyph.
A large ladle for molten metal, fitted with long bars for handling it.
The body of a type; between the shoulder and the foot.
(shoemaking) The part of the sole beneath the instep connecting the broader front part with the heel.
Flat-nosed pliers, used by opticians for nipping off the edges of pieces of glass to make them round.
The end or remainder, particularly of a period of time.
The main part or beginning of a period of time.

Example: "the shank of the morning"

Verb

To travel on foot.
To stab, especially with an improvised blade.
To remove another's trousers, especially in jest; to depants.
To misstrike the ball with the part of the club head that connects to the shaft.
To hit or kick the ball in an unintended direction.
To fall off, as a leaf, flower, or capsule, on account of disease affecting the supporting footstalk; usually followed by off.
To provide (a button) with a shank (loop forming an eye).
(shoemaking) To apply the shank to a shoe, during the process of manufacturing it.

Adjective

Bad.

Related Words to "shank"

Discover words associated with "shank" through various relationships - including meaning, context, usage, and more. Exploring word associations helps build a deeper understanding of language connections.

waist cannon stem rod sword blade shiv knife

Words That Sound Like "shank"

Practice these words that sound similar to "shank" to improve your pronunciation precision and train your ear to distinguish subtle sound differences.

shack 1 syllable shrank 1 syllable shang 1 syllable tank 1 syllable junk 1 syllable rank 1 syllable sank 1 syllable chunk 1 syllable

Similar Spelling to "shank"

Explore words with similar spelling patterns to "shank" to improve your spelling skills and expand your vocabulary with words that look alike but may have different meanings.

shark shack thank swank stank shrank sank shang