D defs.my
Entry 2 senses Webster, 1913

Shifting

· Shift·ing · IPA /ʃˈɪftɪŋ/
01 a. Changing in place, position, or direction; varying; variable; fickle; as, shifting winds; shifting opinions or principles.
  1. 1.
    Changing in place, position, or direction; varying; variable; fickle; as, shifting winds; shifting opinions or principles.
  2. 2.
    Adapted or used for shifting anything.
Phrases & compounds
Shifting backstays — temporary stays that have to be let go whenever the vessel tacks or jibes.
Shifting ballast — ballast which may be moved from one side of a vessel to another as safety requires.
Shifting center — See Metacenter.
Shifting locomotive — See Switching engine, under Switch.