(1):

(n.) A wire for changing a loop from one needle to another, as in narrowing, etc.

(2):

(n.) One who, or that which, shifts; one who plays tricks or practices artifice; a cozener.

(3):

(n.) An assistant to the ship's cook in washing, steeping, and shifting the salt provisions.

(4):

(n.) An arrangement for shifting a belt sidewise from one pulley to another.