From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
shade
n 1: relative darkness caused by light rays being intercepted by
an opaque body; "it is much cooler in the shade"; "there's
too much shadiness to take good photographs" [syn: shade,
shadiness, shadowiness]
2: a quality of a given color that differs slightly from another
color; "after several trials he mixed the shade of pink that
she wanted" [syn: shade, tint, tincture, tone]
3: protective covering that protects something from direct
sunlight; "they used umbrellas as shades"; "as the sun moved
he readjusted the shade"
4: a subtle difference in meaning or opinion or attitude;
"without understanding the finer nuances you can't enjoy the
humor"; "don't argue about shades of meaning" [syn: nuance,
nicety, shade, subtlety, refinement]
5: a position of relative inferiority; "an achievement that puts
everything else in the shade"; "his brother's success left
him in the shade"
6: a slight amount or degree of difference; "a tad too
expensive"; "not a tad of difference"; "the new model is a
shade better than the old one" [syn: tad, shade]
7: a mental representation of some haunting experience; "he
looked like he had seen a ghost"; "it aroused specters from
his past" [syn: ghost, shade, spook, wraith,
specter, spectre]
8: a representation of the effect of shadows in a picture or
drawing (as by shading or darker pigment)
v 1: cast a shadow over [syn: shadow, shade, shade off]
2: represent the effect of shade or shadow on [syn: shade,
fill in]
3: protect from light, heat, or view; "Shade your eyes when you
step out into the bright sunlight"
4: vary slightly; "shade the meaning"
5: pass from one quality such as color to another by a slight
degree; "the butterfly wings shade to yellow"