shun
/ʃʌn/verb
shun is spelled S-H-U-N: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, shun means “To avoid, especially persistently; ostracize” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in shun?
| Letters | 4: S-H-U-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.7 times per million words; the 21,209th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is shun?
Shun appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce shun?
- /ʃʌn/
- /ʃʊn/
Shun has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-shun.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of shun
- shuns present, singular, he/she/it
- shunning participle, present
- shunned participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shun mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To avoid, especially persistently; ostracize.
Acrophobes shun mountaineering.
- 2
To escape (a threatening evil, an unwelcome task etc).
I'll shun meeting them for as long as possible.
- 3
To screen, hide.
- 4
To shove, push.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shun in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | éviter, rejeter , fuir, esquiver |
| German | aus dem Weg gehen, ausweichen, meiden, scheuen, vermeiden, ausstoßen |
| Portuguese | evitar |
| Spanish | evitar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does shun come from?
From Middle English schonen (“to decline to do, avoid, fear”), from Old English sċunian (“to shun, fear, avoid”), of uncertain origin, though probably ultimately connected to the Proto-Indo-European root *(s)kewH- (“to cover, conceal”) via Proto-Germanic *skunōną; see that entry for more discussion. Compare hide, shy, and Sanskrit स्कुनाति (skunāti, “to cover”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).