Definition of shit

adjective

• bad or of poor quality.

  This music is just shit.

  This music is just crap.

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• very good, excellent; COOL. Always preceded by "the" in the complimentary usage. (Does not apply to "crap.")

  I loved that movie! It was the shit.

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

interjection

• used to emphasize a point or request. Also sheesh. (Usually "crap" is not used in this sense.)

  Shit, calm down.

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• used to convey surprise or alarm. Also sheesh. Submitter Emily remembers Kermit The Frog, a character on the children's television program "Sesame Street," saying "sheesh." So despite its (possible) origin as a censored replacement for "shit," it's use is acceptible in polite company.

  Shit!

  Oh shit!

  Crap!

  Oh crap!

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

noun

• objects.

  Who left their shit in my car?

  Who left their crap in my car?

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• feces.

  There is shit on the floor.

  There is crap on the floor.

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• complaints, criticism.

  I've been getting a lot of shit from my landlord.

  I've been getting a lot of crap from my landlord.

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• drugs. ("Crap" is not used to mean drugs.)

  Do you have the shit?

  This is great shit!

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• a mess.

  You'll have to sit in the back seat, 'cause there's shit all over the front seat.

  You'll have to sit in the back seat, 'cause there's crap all over the front seat.

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• nothing.

  There ain't shit going on.

  by Sam A., Kokomo, IN, USA, Aug 24 2002.

• stuff.

  There's a lot of shit out there you don't know.

  by Maurice J., Fall River, MA, USA, Nov 21 2002.

verb

• to defecate.

  I need to shit.

  I need to crap.

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• to attempt to deceive; LIE TO. (Does not apply to "crap.")

  That watch is yours? You're shitting me!

  by Emily M., UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA, Jan 13 1998.

• to be good. See the shit.

  That party was shittin' last night.

  by CO-CO k., Atlantic City, NJ, USA, Oct 21 2001.

notes

• also shiznit, shiz. Most uses of "shit" also work with "crap", except where noted above. See also no shit.

  by Russell T., Austin, TX, USA, Nov 05 1997.

• Folk etymology: An abbreviation used in maritime slang years ago. "SHIT" was painted on the sides of ships manure as an acronym for "Ship High In Transit." The methane released by the manure caused the ship to float high on the water.

  by fleetadmiralmyracle, Decaturville, TN, USA, Jul 13 2005.