Online Etymology Dictionary

shade (v.): "to screen from light or heat," c.1400, from shade (n.). Related: Shaded; shading.
shadow (n.): Old English sceadwe, sceaduwe, oblique cases of sceadu (see shade). As a designation of members of an opposition party chosen as counterparts of the government in power, it is recorded from 1906. Shadow of Death (Ps. xxiii:4, etc.) is Greek skia thanatou, perhaps a mistranslation of a Hebrew word for "intense darkness."
shadow (v.): late Old English sceadwian "to protect as with covering wings" (cf. also overshadow), from the root of shadow (n.). Meaning "to follow like a shadow" is from c.1600 in an isolated instance; not attested again until 1872. Related: Shadowed; shadowing.
shadow boxing (n.): 1906; shadow-fight is attested from 1768; cf. also sciamachy.
shadowland (n.): "abode of ghosts and spirits," 1821, from shadow (n.) + land (n.).
shadowy (adj.): late 14c., shadewy, "full of shadows," also "transitory, fleeting, unreal;" see shadow (n.) + -y (2). Related: Shadowiness.
Shadrach: name of one of the three children delivered from the "fiery furnace" in Dan. iii:26.
shady (adj.): "affording shade, 1570s, from shade (n.) + -y (2). Meaning "disreputable" (1862) probably is from earlier university slang sense of "of questionable merit, unreliable" (1848). Related: Shadiness.
Shafi'i (n.): member of one of the four principal schools of Sunni Muslims, 1704, from Arabic, from ash-Shafi'i, cognomen of founder Abu Abdallah Muhammad ibn Idris (767-819).
shaft (n.1): Old English sceaft "long, slender rod of a staff or spear," from Proto-Germanic *skaftaz (cf. Old Norse skapt, Old Saxon skaft, Old High German scaft, German schaft, Dutch schacht, not found in Gothic), which some connect with a Germanic passive past participle of PIE root *(s)kep- "to cut, to scrape" (cf. Old English scafan "to shave") on notion of "tree branch stripped of its bark." But cf. Latin scapus "shaft, stem, shank," which appears to be a cognate. Meaning "beam or ray" (of light, etc.) is attested from c.1300. Vulgar slang meaning "penis" first recorded 1719.
shaft (n.2): "long, narrow passage sunk into the earth," early 15c., probably from shaft (n.1) on notion of "long and cylindrical," perhaps as a translation of cognate Low German schacht in this sense (Grimm's suggestion, though OED is against it). Or it may represent a separate (unrecorded) development in Old English directly from Proto-Germanic *skaftaz in the original sense of "scrape, dig." The double sense of shaft is attested in country music song title, "She Got the Gold Mine, I Got the Shaft."
shaft (v.): "treat cruelly and unfairly," by 1958, perhaps from shaft (n.1), with overtones of sodomy. Related: Shafted; shafting.
shag (n.): 1590s, "cloth having a velvet nap on one side," from Old English sceacga "rough matted hair or wool," cognate with Old Norse skegg "beard," from Proto-Germanic *skagjan, perhaps related to Old High German scahho "promontory," with a connecting sense of "jutting out, projecting." Of tobacco, "cut in fine shreds," it is recorded from 1789; of carpets, rugs, etc., from 1946. Shagbark as a type of hickory is from 1751.
shag (v.): "copulate with," 1788, probably from obs. verb shag (late 14c.) "to shake, waggle," which probably is connected to shake (cf. shake, shake it in U.S. blues slang from 1920s, ostensibly with reference to dancing).
And þe boot, amydde þe water, was shaggid. [Wyclif]
Also the name of a dance popular in U.S. 1930s and '40s. The baseball verb meaning "to catch" (fly balls) is attested from 1913, of uncertain origin or connection to other senses of the word.
shaggy (adj.): 1590s (earlier shagged, Old English), from shag (n.) + -y (2). The shaggy-dog story as a type of joke is attested from 1945.
shah (n.): title of the king of Persia, 1560s, shaw, from Persian shah, shortened from Old Persian xšayathiya "king," from Indo-Iranian *ksayati "he has power over, rules" from PIE *tke- "to gain control of, gain power over" (cf. Sanskrit ksatram "dominion;" Greek krasthai "to acquire, get," kektesthai "to possess"). His wife is a shahbanu (from banu "lady"); his son is a shahzadah (from zadah "son").
shake (v.): Old English sceacan "to vibrate, make vibrate, move away" (class VI strong verb; past tense scoc, past participle scacen), from Proto-Germanic *skakanan (cf. Old Norse, Swedish skaka, Danish skage "to shift, turn, veer").

No certain cognates outside Germanic, but some suggest a possible connection to Sanskrit khaj "to agitate, churn, stir about," Old Church Slavonic skoku "a leap, bound," Welsh ysgogi "move," and ultimately to PIE *(s)keg-. To shake hands dates from 1530s. Shake a leg "hurry up" first recorded 1904; shake a heel (sometimes foot) was an old way to say "to dance" (1660s). Phrase more _____ than you can shake a stick at is attested from 1818, American English. To shake (one's) head as a sign of disapproval is recorded from c.1300.
shake (n.): late 14c., from shake (v.). As a type of instantaneous action, it is recorded from 1816. Phrase fair shake "honest deal" is attested from 1830, American English. The shakes "nervous agitation" is from 1620s. Shakeout "business upheaval" is from 1895; shake-up "reorganization" is from 1899. Dismissive phrase no great shakes (1816) perhaps is from dicing.
shakedown (n.): also shake down, 1730, "impromptu bed made upon loose straw," from shake (v.) + down (adv.). Figurative verbal sense of "blackmail, extort" is attested from 1872, noun meaning "a thorough search" is from 1914; both probably from the notion of measuring corn. The verbal phrase to shake down "cause to totter and fall" is recorded from c.1400.
shaken (adj.): of persons, "weakened and agitated by shocks," 1640s, from + shake (v.) + -en (2).
shaker (n.): mid-15c., "one who or which shakes," aqgent noun from shake (v.). Applied from 1640s (with capital initial) to various Christian sects whose devotional exercises often involved convulsions. The best-known, the American-based "Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing" so called from 1784; the adjective with reference to furniture styles associated with the Shakers is recorded from 1866. Meaning "container for mixing cocktails, etc." is recorded from 1868. Phrase movers and shakers is attested from 1874.
Shakespeare: surname recorded from 1248, and means "a spearman." This was a common type of English surname, e.g. Shakelance (1275), Shakeshaft (1332). Shake in the sense of "to brandish or flourish (a weapon)" is attested from late Old English
Heo scæken on heore honden speren swiðe stronge. [Laymon, "Brut," c. 1205]
"Never a name in English nomenclature so simple or so certain in origin. It is exactly what it looks -- Shakespear" [Bardsley, "Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames," 1901]. Nevertheless, speculation flourishes.
shako (n.): cylindrical soldier's hat with plume, 1815, from Hungarian csákó, short for csákós süveg "peaked cap," from adjectival form of csáko "peak, projecting point of a cow's horn," which some European etymologists derive from German zacken "point, spike," but which Hungarian sources regard as of unknown origin.
shaky (adj.): 1834 of structures; 1840, of handwriting; 1841 of persons and credit; from shake + -y (2). General sense of "uncertain" is from 1834. Earliest of trees or logs, "split, having fissures" (1808). Related: Shakily; shakiness.
shale (n.): 1747, possibly a specialized use of Middle English schale "shell, husk, pod" (late 14c.), also "fish scale," from Old English scealu (see shell (n.)) in its base sense of "thing that divides or separate," in reference to the way the rock breaks apart in layers. Geological use also possibly influenced by German Schalstein "laminated limestone," and Schalgebirge "layer of stone in stratified rock."
shall (v.): Old English sceal "I owe/he owes, will have to, ought to, must" (infinitive sculan, past tense sceolde), a common Germanic preterite-present verb, from Proto-Germanic *skal-/*skul- (cf. Old Saxon sculan, Old Norse and Swedish skola, Middle Dutch sullen, Old High German solan, German sollen, Gothic skulan "to owe, be under obligation;" related via past tense form to Old English scyld "guilt," German Schuld "guilt, debt;" also Old Norse Skuld, name of one of the Norns).

Ground sense probably is "I owe," hence "I ought." The sense shifted in Middle English from a notion of "obligation" to include "futurity." Its past tense form has become should (q.v.). Cognates outside Germanic are Lithuanian skeleti "to be guilty," skilti "to get into debt;" Old Prussian skallisnan "duty," skellants "guilty."
shallop (n.): "kind of light boat," 1570s, from French chaloupe, from Dutch sloep "sloop" (see sloop). Cf. Spanish chalupa, Italian scialuppa.
shallot (n.): 1664, from French échalote, from Middle French eschalotte, from Old French eschaloigne, from Vulgar Latin *escalonia (see scallion).
shallow (adj.): c.1400, schalowe "not deep," probably from Old English sceald (see shoal). Of breathing, attested from 1875; of thought or feeling, "superficial," first recorded 1580s. The noun, usually shallows, is first recorded 1570s, from the adjective.
shalom: Jewish word of greeting, 1881, from Hebrew, literally "peace," properly "completeness, soundness, welfare," from stem of shalam "was intact, was complete, was in good health."
sham (n.): 1670s, "a trick, a hoax, a fraud," perhaps from sham, a northern dialectal variant of shame (q.v.). Sense of "Something meant to be mistaken for something else" is from 1728. The meaning in pillow-sham (1721) is from the notion of "counterfeit." The adjective is attested from 1680s; the verb from 1670s. Related: Shammed; shamming. Shamateur "amateur sportsman who acts like a professional" is from 1896.
shaman (n.): 1690s, "priest of the Ural-Altaic peoples," probably via German Schamane, from Russian shaman, from Tungus shaman, which is perhaps from Chinese sha men "Buddhist monk," from Prakrit samaya-, from Sanskrit sramana-s "Buddhist ascetic."
shamanism (n.): 1780, from shaman + -ism.
shamble (v.): "to walk with a shuffling gait," 1680s, from an adjective meaning "ungainly, awkward" (c.1600), from shamble (n.) "table, bench" (see shambles) perhaps on the notion of the splayed legs of bench, or the way a worker sits astride it. Cf. French bancal "bow-legged, wobbly" (of furniture), prop. "bench-legged," from banc "bench." Related: Shambled; shambling.
shambles (n.): late 15c., "meat or fish market," from schamil "table, stall for vending" (c.1300), from Old English scomul, sceamel "stool, footstool, table for vending," an early West Germanic borrowing (cf. Old Saxon skamel, Middle Dutch schamel, Old High German scamel, German schemel) from Latin scamillus "low stool," ultimately a diminutive of scamnum "stool, bench," from PIE root *skabh- "to prop up, support." In English, sense evolved to "slaughterhouse" (1540s), "place of butchery" (1590s), and "confusion, mess" (1901).
shambolic (adj.): by 1970, apparently from shamble, perhaps on model of symbolic.
shame (n.): Old English sceamu, sceomu "feeling of guilt or disgrace," from Proto-Germanic *skamo (cf. Old Saxon skama, Old Norse skömm, Swedish skam, Old Frisian scome, Dutch schaamte, Old High German scama, German Scham), probably from PIE *skem-, from *kem- "to cover" (covering oneself being a common expression of shame).

An Old Norse word for it was kinnroði, literally "cheek-redness," hence, "blush of shame." Greek distinguished shame in the bad sense of "disgrace, dishonor" (aiskhyne) from shame in the good sense of "modesty, bashfulness" (aidos).
shame (v.): Old English sceamian, from the root of shame (n.). Cf. German schämen sich. Related: Shamed; shaming.
shamefaced (adj.): 1550s, "modest, bashful," folk etymology alteration of shamefast, from Old English scamfæst "bashful," literally "restrained by shame," or else "firm in modesty," from shame (n.) + -fæst, adjectival suffix (see fast (adj.)).
shameful (adj.): Old English scemful "modest;" see shame + -ful. Meaning "disgraceful, causing shame" is from early 14c. Related: Shamefully; shamefulness.
shameless (adj.): Old English sceamleas; see shame + -less. Related: Shamelessly; shamelessness.
shammy: 1650s, phonetic spelling of chamois.
shampoo (v.): 1762, "to massage," from Anglo-Indian shampoo, from Hindi champo, imperative of champna "to press, knead the muscles," perhaps from Sanskrit capayati "pounds, kneads." Meaning "wash the hair" first recorded 1860; extended 1954 to carpets, upholstery, etc. The noun meaning "soap for shampooing" first recorded 1866.
shamrock (n.): 1570s, from Irish seamrog, diminutive of seamar "clover."
shamus (n.): "police officer, detective," 1920, apparently first in "The Shamus," a detective story published that year by Harry J. Loose (1880-1943), a Chicago police detective and crime writer; the book was marketed as "a true tale of thiefdom and an expose of the real system in crime." The word is said to be probably from Yiddish, literally "sexton of a synagogue," from Hebrew shamash "servant;" influenced by Celt. Seamus "James," as a typical name for an Irish cop.
shan't: by 1701, "colloquial" [OED] contraction of shall not.
shandy (n.): "mix of beer and fizzy lemonade," 1888, shortening of shandygaff (1853), of unknown origin.
Shane: masc. proper name, variant of Sean.
shanghai (v.): 1854, American English, "to drug a man unconscious and ship him as a sailor," from the practice of kidnapping to fill the crews of ships making extended voyages, such as to the Chinese seaport of Shanghai.
Shanghai: Chinese seaport, literally "by the sea," from Shang "on, above" + hai "sea."