Shanghai

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˌʃaŋˈhaɪ/
• US IPA: /ˈʃeɪŋ.haɪ/, /ˌʃeɪŋˈhaɪ/
• Rhymes: -aɪ

Origin

From Mandarin 上海, with reference to the former practice of forcibly crewing ships heading for the Orient.

Full definition of shanghai

Verb

1. (transitive) To force or trick (someone) into joining a ship which is lacking a full crew.
• 1999 June 24, ‘The Resurrection of Tom Waits’, in Rolling Stone, quoted in Innocent When You Dream, Orion (2006), page 256,It was the strangest galley: the sounds, the steam, he's screaming at his coworkers. I felt like I'd been shanghaied.
2. (transitive) To abduct or coerce.
• 1974 September 30, ‘Final Report on the Activities of the Children of God',Oftentimes the approach is to shanghai an unsuspecting victim.
3. (transitive) To commandeer; appropriate; hijackLet's see if we can shanghai a room for a couple of hours.

Synonyms

• (force or trick someone into joining a ship; abduct or coerce) press-gang

Noun

1. (AU, NZ) A slingshot.
• 1985, Peter Carey, Illywhacker, Faber and Faber 2003, p. 206:They scrounged around the camp … and held out their filthy wings to the feeble sun, making themselves an easy target for Charles's shanghai.