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Definition of "shutter" []

  • One that shuts, as: (noun)
  • A hinged cover or screen for a window, usually fitted with louvers. (noun)
  • A mechanical device of a camera that controls the duration of a photographic exposure, as by opening and closing to allow light coming through the lens to expose a plate or film. (noun)
  • Music The movable louvers on a pipe organ, controlled by pedals, that open and close the swell box. (noun)
  • To furnish or close with shutters: locked the doors and shuttered the windows. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "shutter" in a sentence
  • "The exposure time set on the camera just has to be long enough for the action to happen while the shutter is still open."
  • "The main purpose for the shutter is to offer the complete freedom of choosing the extent to which we want the elements to play a part in out interiors."
  • "To get the right fraction of a second, we must factor in shutter lag."