Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To close (an opening or hole) by covering, filling in, or plugging up.
  • intransitive verb To constrict (an opening or orifice).
  • intransitive verb To obstruct or block passage on (a road, for example).
  • intransitive verb To prevent the flow or passage of.
  • intransitive verb To halt the motion or progress of.
  • intransitive verb To block or deflect (a blow, for example); parry or ward off.
  • intransitive verb To be or get in the way of (a bullet or other missile); be killed or wounded by.
  • intransitive verb To cause to desist or to change a course of action.
  • intransitive verb To prevent or restrain.
  • intransitive verb To discontinue or cease.
  • intransitive verb To defeat (an opponent or opposing team).
  • intransitive verb To defeat in boxing by a knockout or technical knockout.
  • intransitive verb To order a bank to withhold payment of.
  • intransitive verb To press down (a string on a stringed instrument) on the fingerboard to produce a desired pitch.
  • intransitive verb To close (a hole on a wind instrument) with the finger in sounding a desired pitch.
  • intransitive verb To cease moving, progressing, acting, or operating; come to a halt.
  • intransitive verb To put an end to what one is doing; cease.
  • intransitive verb To interrupt one's course or journey for a brief visit or stay. Often used with by, in, or off:
  • noun The act of stopping or the condition of being stopped.
  • noun A halt or stay, as on a trip.
  • noun A place at which someone or something stops.
  • noun A device or means that obstructs, blocks, or plugs up.
  • noun An order given to a bank to withhold payment on a check.
  • noun A stop order.
  • noun A part in a mechanism that stops or regulates movement.
  • noun The effective aperture of a lens, controlled by a diaphragm.
  • noun A mark of punctuation, especially a period.
  • noun The act of stopping a string or hole on an instrument.
  • noun A fret on a stringed instrument.
  • noun A hole on a wind instrument.
  • noun A device such as a key for closing the hole on a wind instrument.
  • noun A tuned set of pipes, as in an organ.
  • noun A knob, key, or pull that regulates such a set of pipes.
  • noun Nautical A line used for securing something temporarily.
  • noun Linguistics One of a set of speech sounds that is a plosive or a nasal.
  • noun A plosive.
  • noun The depression between the muzzle and top of the skull of an animal, especially a dog.
  • noun Sports A save made by a goalie.
  • noun Games A stopper.
  • noun Architecture A projecting stone, often carved, at the end of a molding.
  • noun A control mechanism on an audio or video player that causes a recording to stop playing.
  • adjective Of, relating to, or being of use at the end of an operation or activity.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English stoppen, from Old English -stoppian, probably from Vulgar Latin *stuppāre, to caulk, from Latin stuppa, tow, broken flax, from Greek stuppē.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English stoppe, from Old English stoppa ("bucket, pail, a stop"), from Proto-Germanic *stuppô (“vat, vessel”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)teub- (“to push, hit; stick, stump”). Cognate with Norwegian stopp, stoppa ("deep well, recess"), Middle High German stubech, stübich ("barrel, vat, unit of measure"; > German Stübchen). Related also to Middle Low German stōp ("beaker, flask"), Middle High German stouf ("beaker, flask"), Norwegian staupa ("goblet"), Icelandic staupa ("shot-glass"), Old English stēap ("a stoup, beaker, drinking vessel, cup, flagon"). Cognate to Albanian shtambë ("amphora, bucket"). See stoup.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English stoppen, stoppien, from Old English stoppian ("to stop, close"), from Proto-Germanic *stuppōnan (“to stop, close”), *stuppijanan (“to push, pierce, prick”), from Proto-Indo-European *stÁb(h)-, *stemb(h)- (“to support, stamp, become angry, be amazed”). Cognate with West Frisian stopje ("to stop"), Dutch stoppen ("to stop"), Low German stoppen ("to stop"), German stopfen ("to be filling, stuff"), German stoppen ("to stop"), Danish stoppe ("to stop"), Swedish & Icelandic stoppa ("to stop"), Middle High German stupfen, stüpfen ("to pierce"). More at stuff, stump.

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Examples

  • And oh yeah..stop eating food from the drive thru and for God sake stop feeding it to your children. and please don't give them candy for snack time at school.

    Spot-On: Eating Oil 2008

  • The first thing then to be done to put a stop to this frightful waste of human life every year is to _stop the circulation of the bacillus from one person to another_.

    A Handbook of Health Woods Hutchinson 1896

  • Kentucky should at one grand coup _stop spring shooting and all sale of wild game, accord long close seasons to all species that are verging on extinction, protect doves, establish moderate bag limits and stop the use of machine guns_.

    Our Vanishing Wild Life Its Extermination and Preservation William Temple Hornaday 1895

  • After a * fastfood sandwich* lunch, which was simple felafel or chicken wrap, we had a quick pit stop * commission stop* at a traditional papyrus store/factory.

    TravelPod.com TravelStream™ — Recent Entries at TravelPod.com 2010

  • PRKP-1009 \ "Failed to stop all the listeners associated with all the instances of cluster database \" Cause: Either the listener name associated with an instance could not be determined, or \ "lsnrctl stop\" failed for a listener.

    Recently Uploaded Slideshows 2009

  • PRKP-1010 \ "Failed to stop all the listeners associated with instance {0} on node {1} \" Cause: Either the listener name associated with an instance could not be determined, or \ "lsnrctl stop\" failed for a listener.

    Recently Uploaded Slideshows 2009

  • Whenever they stop with the poor me ’stop ABUSING us internets!’ attitude and learn how to engage the online community in constructive ways it might just be a brand new day for comics.

    Scans_Daily no more? 2009

  • And oftentimes, we hear the term stop and frisk, and over the last few years, the terms have just become as if this is one action that occurs every time a police officer engages a citizen.

    News 2011

  • STOP 1. The phrase stop sign, also Made in USA, is first attested only some years later, in 1934. “stop,” OED.

    The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010

  • STOP 1. The phrase stop sign, also Made in USA, is first attested only some years later, in 1934. “stop,” OED.

    The English Is Coming! Leslie Dunton-Downer 2010

  • Just to give you a heads up – I’ve got a hard stop today at 9:45. I need to leave early to prep for my next meeting.

    Consulting Lines: "I have a hard stop at..." - Brent Ozar Unlimited® Brent Ozar 2017

Comments

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  • STOP.

    January 25, 2010