Shaft

Shaft may refer to:

Rotating machine elements

• Shaft (mechanical engineering), a rotating machine element used to transmit power
• Line shaft, a power transmission system
• Drive shaft, a shaft for transferring torque
• Axle, a shaft around which one or more wheels rotate

Vertical narrow passages

• Elevator shaft, a vertical passage housing a lift or elevator
• Ventilation shaft, a vertical passage used in mines and tunnels to move fresh air underground, and to remove stale air
• Shaft (civil engineering), an underground vertical or inclined passageway
• Pitch (ascent/descent), a significant underground vertical space in caving terminology
• Shaft mining, the method of excavating a vertical or near-vertical tunnel from the top down, where there is initially no access to the bottom
• Shafting, illicit travelling through shafts

Long narrow rigid bodies

• The body of a column between the capital and the pedestal, or the column itself
• Type of long handle (grip) of hand-tools
• Shaft (golf), the long, tapered tube or rod which connects the golfer’s hands to the club head
• Staff, various applications
• The rachis of a feather, used in the name of certain species of birds

Fiction

• Shaft (franchise), a media franchise involving novels, comics, TV, film
  • Shaft (novel), 1970 novel by Ernest Tidyman about an African-American private detective
  • Shaft (1971 film), a film based on the novel
    • Shaft (song), theme song from the original film, serving as the theme for the entire franchise
  • Shaft (2000 film), a direct sequel/spin-off of the 1971 film, released in 2000, and fourth film in the series
    • Shaft (2000 soundtrack)
  • Shaft (2019 film), a direct sequel to the 2000 film and fifth film in the series
  • Shaft (TV series), a 1973–1974 series of TV movies
  • Shaft (Dynamite Entertainment), a comic book series based on the character John Shaft
  • John Shaft, the titular character of the franchise
• Shaft (Castlevania), the dark priest from the Castlevania video game series
• Shaft (Marvel Comics), a Marvel Comics ninja character
• Shaft (Image Comics), a comic book character created by Rob Liefeld for his comic Youngblood
• Down (film), a 2001 horror film also known as The Shaft

Music

• Shaft (rave group), a UK dance music act which had a 1991 hit with "Roobarb and Custard" sampling vintage children's television programme Roobarb
• Shaft (British electronic duo), a dance music act which had a 1999 hit with a cover-remix of "(Mucho Mambo) Sway"
• Shaft (New Zealand band), a New Zealand indie band
• Shaft (club), a blues and jazz club in Istanbul, Turkey
• Shaft (Isaac Hayes album), the soundtrack for the film of the same name, recorded by Isaac Hayes
  • "Theme from Shaft", performed by Isaac Hayes
• Shaft (Bernard Purdie album), a 1971 jazz album featuring a cover of the above track

Places

• Borden Shaft, Maryland, formerly called Shaft
• Shaft County, an administrative division of Gīlan Province in Iran
• Shaft, Iran, the capital of Shaft County
• Shaft, Bushehr, a village and island in Bushehr Province, Iran

Other

• Shaft (company), a Japanese animation studio
• Penile shaft, a part of the penis
• Clitoral shaft, a part of the clitoris
• Diaphysis, shaft of a long bone