the straight rod portion of a climbing spike which straps to the climber’s inner leg.
Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
shank (noun)1.
a) the part of the leg between the knee and the ankle in humans or the corresponding part in various other vertebrates
b) - leg
c) a cut of beef, veal, mutton, or lamb from the upper or the lower part of the leg - shin see beef illustration
2.
a straight narrow usually essential part of an object as
a) the straight part of a nail or pin
b) a straight part of a plant - stem stalk
c) the part of an anchor between the ring and the crown - see anchor illustration
d) the part of a fishhook between the eye and the bend
e) the part of a key between the handle and the bit
f) the stem of a tobacco pipe or the part between the stem and the bowl
g) - tang
h) (1) the narrow part of the sole of a shoe beneath the instep
(2) - shankpiece
3.
a part of an object by which it can be attached as
a) (1) a projection on the back of a solid button
(2) a short stem of thread that holds a sewn button away from the cloth
b) the end (as of a drill bit) that is gripped in a chuck
4.
a) the latter part of a period of time
b) the early or main part of a period of time - 11 p.m. on the East coast is merely the shank of the evening on the West coast
5.
slang an often homemade knife
transitive verb
to hit (a golf ball or shot) with the extreme heel of the club so that the ball goes off in an unintended direction , also to kick (a football) in an unintended direction