Emily Dickinson Lexicon

SHIFT, n.

1. A change; a turning from one thing to another; hence, an expedient tried in difficulty; one thing tried whey another fails. I'll find a thousand shifts to get away. Shak.
2. In a bad sense, mean refuge; last resource. For little souls on little shifts rely. Dryden.
3. Fraud; artifice; expedient to effect a bad purpose; or, an evasion; a trick to escape detection or evil. Hooker. South.
4. A woman's under garment; a chemise.