Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
SHANK
I. noun
Etymology: Middle English shanke, from Old English scanca; akin to Old Norse skakkr crooked, Greek skazein to limp Date: before 12th century
1. the part of the leg between the knee and the ankle in humans or the corresponding part in various other vertebrates, leg , a cut of beef, veal, mutton, or lamb from the upper or the lower part of the leg ; shin , a straight narrow usually essential part of an object: as, the straight part of a nail or pin, a straight part of a plant ; stem , stalk , the part of an anchor between the ring and the crown, the part of a fishhook between the eye and the bend, the part of a key between the handle and the bit, the stem of a tobacco pipe or the part between the stem and the bowl, tang 1, h. the narrow part of the sole of a shoe beneath the instep, shankpiece , a part of an object by which it can be attached: as, a. a projection on the back of a solid button, a short stem of thread that holds a sewn button away from the cloth, the end (as of a drill bit) that is gripped in a chuck,
4. the latter part of a period of time, the early or main part of a period of time , an often homemade knife, shanked adjective
II. transitive verb
Date: 1927
to hit (a golf ball or shot) with the extreme heel of the club so that the ball goes off in an unintended direction