shelter: [16] The origins of shelter are unclear, but the most usually accepted explanation is that it is an alteration of the now obsolete sheltron. This denoted a body of troops which protected itself in battle with a covering of joined shields. It was descended from Old English scieldtruma, a compound formed from scield, the ancestor of modern English shield, and truma ‘troop’. => shield
shelter (n.)
1580s, "structure affording protection," possibly an alteration of Middle English sheltron, sheldtrume "roof or wall formed by locked shields," from Old English scyldtruma, from scield "shield" (see shield (n.)) + truma "troop," related to Old English trum "firm, strong" (see trim).
If so, the original notion is of a compact body of men protected by interlocking shields. OED finds this "untenable" and proposed derivation from shield + -ture. Figurative sense is recorded from 1580s; meaning "temporary lodging for homeless poor" is first recorded 1890 in Salvation Army jargon; sense of "temporary home for animals" is from 1971. Related: Shelterless.
shelter (v.)
1580s, "to screen, protect," from shelter (n.); in the income investment sense, from 1955. Meaning "to take shelter" is from c. 1600. Related: Sheltered; sheltering.
实用例句
1. The number of families seeking shelter rose by 17 percent.
寻求避难的家庭户增加了17％。
来自柯林斯例句
2. Many are sleeping in the open because they have no shelter.
很多人因为没有栖身之所，只好露宿在外。
来自柯林斯例句
3. When it rained I rigged up a partial shelter with a tarpaulin.
下雨的时候，我用油布草草搭了一个能简单避雨的棚子。
来自柯林斯例句
4. No shelter was available for miles around in this treeless landscape.
