shadoof
Syllables: sha·doof/ʃəˈduːf//ʃəˈduf/
shadoof noun: a device used since ancient times in the Middle East to raise water from a well or other low point, consisting of a pivoted rod with a bucket on one end and a counterweight on the other.
Noun
shadoof (plural shadoofs)
- A device used since ancient times in the Middle East to raise water from a well or other low point, consisting of a pivoted rod with a bucket on one end and a counterweight on the other.
- The waters intended for irrigating lands situated on the sides of the hills and at the bottom of a valley, are first raised to the top by a balance called deloo, or shadoof.1825, [Conrad] Malte-Brun, “Part I. A Physical Description of this Country.”, in Universal Geography, or A Description of All the Parts of the World, […], volume IV (Containing the Description of...
- [T]he fields in the vicinity of the river and of the large canals, and some other lands, in which pits are dug for water, are irrigated by means of machines of different kinds. The most common of these machines is the sha′doo′f, which consists of two posts or pillars of wood, or of mud and canes or...1836, Edward William Lane, “Industry”, in An Account of the Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians, […], volume II, London: Charles Knight and Co, […], →OCLC, page 24
- Synonyms:
- counterpoise-lift, dhenkli, picota, swape, sweep
shadoof meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada
shadoof in Hindi
- device to raise water
- ढेंकली ḍhẽklī
shadoof in Tamil
- device to raise water
- ஏற்றமரம் ēṟṟamaram, பூட்டை pūṭṭai
shadoof in Malayalam
- device to raise water
- ഏത്തം ēttaṁ, ത്ലാവ് tlāvŭ
shadoof in Kannada
- device to raise water
- ಏತ ēta
More languagesFewer languages
- shadoof in Arabic
- شَادُوف šādūf
- shadoof in Malay
- syaduf
- shadoof in Persian
- شادوف
Examples of shadoof in a sentence
- They use the same ploughs and the same shadoofs for raising water.1893 October, C[lement] B[oulton] Roylance Kent, “Life in Modern Egypt”, in Sylvanus Urban [pseudonym], editor, The Gentleman’s Magazine...
- The shadoof can be traced back 5,400 years, or to about 3500 B.C., and the indications are that it was considered an ancient device even at that remote time.1914 August, “Crude Egyptian Device for Raising Water”, in H[enry] H[aven] Windsor, editor, Popular Mechanics Magazine, volume 22, number...
- Now and again you can hear a shrill screeching sound from the bank, produced by sakhiehs and shadoofs, this last being similar to the water-raising "crane" pump we have in the Ukraine.2020, Igor Kovalevsky, “Nubia along the Nile”, in Anna Aslanyan, transl., A Journey to Inner Africa […], [Amherst, Mass.]: Amherst College...
Synonyms of shadoof
Forms of shadoof
| plural | shadoofs |
|---|---|
| alternative form | shadouf |
| alternative form | shaduf |
Origin of shadoof
Borrowed from Egyptian Arabic شادوف (šadūf); see further at that entry.
Words that rhyme with shadoof
Questions about shadoof
- What does shadoof mean?
- Shadoof means a device used since ancient times in the Middle East to raise water from a well or other low point, consisting of a pivoted rod with a bucket on one end and a counterweight on the other.
- What is shadoof in Hindi?
- Shadoof in Hindi is ढेंकली (ḍhẽklī). See Shadoof meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use shadoof in a sentence?
- They use the same ploughs and the same shadoofs for raising water.
- What part of speech is shadoof?
- Shadoof is a noun.
- How do you pronounce shadoof?
- Shadoof is pronounced /ʃəˈduːf/ (UK).
- What is the plural of shadoof?
- The plural of shadoof is shadoofs.
Words near shadoof in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: shadoof (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-shadoof.wav, LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-shadoof.wav.
Cite this entry: “shadoof.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/shadoof. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.