From Middle English schewen, from Old English scēawian, from Proto-West Germanic *skauwōn, from Proto-Germanic *skawwōną, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewh₁-; see haw, gaum, caveat, caution.

Cognate with Scots shaw, Dutch schouwen, German schauen, Danish skue. Related to sheen.

Wider cognates include Ancient Greek κῦδος, Latin caveō whence English caution and English caveat, and Sanskrit कवि.

• (RP) IPA: /ʃəʊ/
• (America) enPR: shō, IPA: /ʃoʊ/

show (shows, present participle showing; simple past showed, past participle shown)

1. (transitive) To display, to have somebody see (something).

   The car's dull finish showed years of neglect.

   All he had to show for four years of attendance at college was a framed piece of paper.

   • 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XXII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC ↗:

     Not unnaturally, “Auntie” took this communication in bad part. Thus outraged, she showed herself to be a bold as well as a furious virago. Next day she found her way to their lodgings and tried to recover her ward by the hair of the head.

2. (transitive) To bestow; to confer.

   to show mercy; to show favour; (dialectal) show me the salt please

3. (transitive) To indicate (a fact) to be true; to demonstrate.
   • 2018, VOA Learning English > China's Melting Glacier Brings Visitors, Adds to Climate Concerns ↗

     A report this year in the Journal of Geophysical Research showed that the glacier has lost 60 percent of its mass.

4. (transitive) To guide or escort.

   Could you please show him on his way. He has overstayed his welcome.

   They showed us in.

5. (intransitive) To be visible; to be seen; to appear.

   Your bald patch is starting to show.

   At length, his gloom showed.

   • 1690, [John] Dryden, Don Sebastian, King of Portugal: […], London: […] Jo. Hindmarsh, […], →OCLC ↗, (please specify the page number):

     Just such she shows before a rising storm.

   • 1842, Alfred Tennyson, “The Day-Dream. The Sleeping Palace.”, in Poems. […], volume II, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC ↗, page 151 ↗:

     All round a hedge upshoots, and shows / At distance like a little wood.

   • 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter I, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC ↗:

     'Twas early June, the new grass was flourishing everywheres, the posies in the yard—peonies and such—in full bloom, the sun was shining, and the water of the bay was blue, with light green streaks where the shoal showed.

6. (intransitive, informal) To put in an appearance; show up.

   We waited for an hour, but they never showed.

7. (intransitive, informal) To have an enlarged belly and thus be recognizable as pregnant.
8. (intransitive, racing) To finish third, especially of horses or dogs.

   In the third race: Aces Up won, paying eight dollars; Blarney Stone placed, paying three dollars; and Cinnamon showed, paying five dollars.

9. (intransitive, card games) To reveal one's hand of cards.
   • 2017, Nathan Schwiethale, Ace High: Mastering Low Stakes Poker Cash Games, page 70:

     He called instantly but was too ashamed to show until the river.

10. (obsolete) To have a certain appearance, such as well or ill, fit or unfit; to become or suit; to appear.
    • c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, [Act IV, scene i]:

      My lord of York, it better showed with you.

• (display) display, exhibit, flaunt, indicate, parade, point out, reveal, rub one's nose in, show off, visiblize
• (indicate a fact to be true) demonstrate, prove
• (put in an appearance) arrive, show up

• (antonym(s) of “display”): conceal, cover up, hide
• (antonym(s) of “indicate a fact to be true”): disprove, refute

• French: montrer
• German: zeigen, darstellen
• Italian: mostrare, fare vedere
• Portuguese: mostrar, apresentar
• Russian: пока́зывать
• Spanish: mostrar, enseñar

• French: démontrer
• German: zeigen
• Italian: dimostrare
• Portuguese: demonstrar
• Russian: пока́зывать
• Spanish: demostrar

• Italian: portare, condurre, guidare

• French: se voir
• Russian: пока́зываться

show

1. (countable) A play, dance or other entertainment.

   There were a thousand people at the show.

   • 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter IV, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC ↗:

     Then he commenced to talk, really talk. and inside of two flaps of a herring's fin he had me mesmerized, like Eben Holt's boy at the town hall show. He talked about the ills of humanity, and the glories of health and Nature and service and land knows what all.

2. (countable) An exhibition of items.

   art show;  dog show

3. (countable) A broadcast program, especially a light entertainment program.

   radio show;  television show

   They performed in the show.

   I spotted my neighbour on the morning TV show.

   • 2016, [https://web.archive.org/web/20171030003034/https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/lets-learn-english-lesson-8-are-you-busy/3253185.html VOA Learning English] (public domain)

     Every day I do my morning show.

4. (countable) A movie.

   Let's catch a show.

5. (AU, NZ, countable) An agricultural show.

   I'm taking the kids to the show on Tuesday.

6. A project or presentation.

   Let's get on with the show.

   Let's get this show on the road.

   They went on an international road show to sell the shares to investors.

   It was Apple's usual dog and pony show.

7. (countable) A demonstration.

   show of force

8. (uncountable) Mere display or pomp with no substance. (Usually seen in the phrases "all show" and "for show".)
   • 1725–1728, [Edward Young], “(please specify the page)”, in Love of Fame, the Universal Passion. In Seven Characteristical Satires, 4th edition, London: […] J[acob] and R[ichard] Tonson […], published 1741, →OCLC ↗:

     I envy none their pageantry and show.

   The dog sounds ferocious but it's all show.

9. Outward appearance; wileful or deceptive appearance.
   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, [Act III, scene ii]:

     So may the outward shows be least themselves:
     The world is still deceived with ornament.

10. (baseball, with "the") The major leagues.

    He played AA ball for years, but never made it to the show.

11. (mining, obsolete) A pale blue flame at the top of a candle flame, indicating the presence of firedamp.
12. (archaic) Pretence.
13. (archaic) Sign, token, or indication.
14. (obsolete) Semblance; likeness; appearance.
    • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC ↗, Luke 20:46-47 ↗:

      Beware of the scribes, […] which devour widows' houses, and for a shew make long prayers.

    • 1667, John Milton, “Book IX”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC ↗; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC ↗:

      He through the midst unmarked,
      In show plebeian angel militant
      Of lowest order, passed.

15. (obsolete) Plausibility.
16. (medicine) A discharge, from the vagina, of mucus streaked with blood, occurring a short time before labor.
17. (military, slang) A battle; local conflict. [1892]

• (exhibition) exhibition, exposition
• (demonstration) demonstration, illustration, proof
• (broadcast program(me)) program
• (mere display with no substance) façade, front, superficiality
• (baseball) big leagues

• French: spectacle, festival
• German: Show, Schau
• Italian: spettacolo
• Portuguese: show, espetáculo
• Russian: представле́ние
• Spanish: espectáculo, show, festival

• French: exposition
• Italian: mostra, esibizione
• Portuguese: mostra, exposição
• Russian: вы́ставка
• Spanish: exposición

• French: démonstration
• German: Demonstration, Schau
• Portuguese: demonstração
• Russian: демонстра́ция
• Spanish: demostración

• French: émission
• German: Sendung, Programm
• Italian: programma
• Portuguese: programa
• Russian: програ́мма
• Spanish: programa

1. Surname.