shuttle, In the weaving of cloth, a spindle-shaped device used to carry the crosswise threads (weft) through the lengthwise threads (warp). Not all modern looms use a shuttle; shuttleless looms draw the weft from a nonmoving supply. Shuttle looms fall into two groups according to whether the shuttle is moved by hand or automatically. The second kind is often described as an automatic loom, but except for shuttle movement it is no more automatic in its operation than the hand-moved or so-called nonautomatic loom. See also flying shuttle.