STOP


Meaning of STOP in English

I. ˈstäp verb

( stopped or archaic stopt -pt ; stopped or archaic stopt ; stopping ; stops )

Etymology: Middle English stoppen, from Old English -stoppian; akin to Old Frisian stoppia to stop up, stuff, Old Low Franconian stuppon, Old High German stopfōn; all from a prehistoric West Germanic word borrowed from (assumed) Vulgar Latin stuppare to stop with tow, from Latin stuppa tow — more at stupe

transitive verb

1.

a. obsolete : to keep confined : prevent the escape of

still the envious flood stopped in my soul, and would not let it forth — Shakespeare

b. : to hinder or prevent the passage of

stop the inlets of fresh experience — Roger Fry

applied a styptic pencil to stop the blood

c. : to keep out : intercept

weather-stripped the windows to stop drafts

most of the rain is stopped by the outer hills — Francis Kingdon-Ward

d. : to get in the way of : suffer the impact of : be wounded or killed by

treats the male natives with bluster and hard knocks, even at the risk of stopping a shovel-headed spear — Leslie Rees

easy to stop a bullet along a lonely stretch of road — Harvey Fergusson

stopped one in the last battle of the war

2. chiefly Scotland : thrust , push , insert

3.

a.

(1) : to close up or block off access to (an opening) : plug

sometimes they refuse to listen, and are seen to stop their ears — B.N.Cardozo

— often used with up

the entrance to the cave was stopped up with rocks

(2) : to close off (a burrow) from use especially by foxes

stopped the earths in the neighboring fields before the hunt

b.

(1) : to make impassable : choke , obstruct

a narrow gangway, which one person could stop — Anthony Trollope

(2) : to fill or partially fill (a passage) with some obstruction — often used with up

if your nose is badly stopped up for long, the infection may back up — X-Rays & You

c.

(1) : to cover over or fill in (a hole or crevice)

the hole in the window was stopped with a piece of cardboard — Christopher Isherwood

built of hewn logs, the interstices stopped with clay — American Guide Series: North Carolina

(2) : to pack (a horse's feet) with some substance

at nightfall stop the feet with wet tow — Richard Ford

(3) : to dress over (as with plaster) : point 2a(1)

(4) chiefly Britain : to put a filling in (a tooth)

gnashed his formidable jaws, gleaming with teeth which had been newly stopped — S.H.Adams

4.

a. : to cause to give up or change a mode of behavior or course of action

tried to stop him from continuing to make a fool of himself

tried to stop her from spending so much time before the mirror

b. : to keep from carrying out a proposed action : hold back : restrain

pleaded with him to stop him from resigning

stopped him from making a speech that would have ruined him

5.

a. : to interrupt or prevent the continuance or occurrence of : cause to cease

teach people how to stop burglaries in their homes or business places — Rufus Jarman

unable to stop the noise of the children

stopped the epidemic

b. : discontinue

stopped work at noon

the phone stopped ringing

c. : to cause to discontinue operating or working

stopped the presses to put in a new lead story

d. : to interrupt in a speech or statement

stopped him short as he was trying to explain his mistake

stop me if you've heard this one before

6.

a. : to deduct or withhold (part or all of a sum due) in order to satisfy a claim or obligation

each worker pays the equivalent of ten cents a week, which is stopped from his wages by the employer — D.W. & Jean Orr

b. : to instruct one's bank not to honor or pay

stop a check

stop payment on a check

7.

a. : to arrest the progress or motion of : bring to a standstill : cause to halt

stopped him with an upraised fat hand — Kenneth Roberts

was stopped in his tracks by a shout from the barn — Time

the violation consists in stopping goods in interstate commerce — T.W.Arnold

stopped the car

stop thief

b. : to check with a counter blow or movement : parry

c. : to check by means of a weapon : bring down

missed his first shot, but stopped a bird with his second

d.

(1) : to defeat in a prizefight by a knockout

stopped his last opponent in three rounds

(2) : to defeat in a game or contest

stopped the opposing team by a wide margin

e. : to give pause to : baffle , nonplus

handles at a fast clip questions that have stopped the industrial experts — New York Times

8.

a. : to regulate the pitch of (as a violin string) by pressing with the finger

b. : to regulate the pitch of (a wind instrument) by closing one or more finger holes or by thrusting the hand or a mute into the bell

9.

a. : to pay out (a cable) gradually in anchoring a ship

b. : to make fast (as a sail) with stops

10. chiefly Britain : pinch I 1b(2)

11.

a. : to hold an honor card and enough protecting cards to be able to block (a bridge suit) before an opponent can run off many tricks

stopped his spades

b.

(1) : to hold both of two honors that can be melded in (a suit or rank)

(2) : to prevent (a meld) by such holding

the double ace of spades stops 100 aces and a spade flush

12. chiefly Britain : punctuate

intransitive verb

1.

a. : to cease activity or operation

the motor stopped

the rain stopped

his heart stopped

b. : to come to an end : close , finish

carried his bow over his shoulder, but the resemblance to the accepted picture stopped there — T.B.Costain

then the din gradually dies down, the music stops — Lafcadio Hearn

c. : to cease to extend

the blue jacket stopping at his waist — Wirt Williams

the highway stops in the middle of nowhere

d. : to end abruptly : break off

it doesn't end; it stops — Arnold Bennett

2.

a. : to cease to move on : stand still : halt

stopping for a moment in his walk — Edith Sitwell

the horse stopped short at the fence

stopped dead to listen for a suspicious sound

b. : to interrupt oneself in an activity or speech

stopped for a while to have lunch

stopped short when he discovered his error

stopped to catch his breath

c. : to take time to consider : pause

had she stopped to think, she would have recalled … the plank there — Laura Krey

3.

a. : to hold back : hesitate

doesn't stop at the most outrageous lies

stops at nothing to gain his ends

b. : to cease from a course of action : desist

his tactics succeeded for a while, but he didn't know where to stop

4.

a.

(1) : to interrupt a trip (as for rest or a meal)

decided to stop at the next roadside restaurant for lunch

— sometimes used with off

stopped off on the way home to pick up some food

(2) : to break one's journey

decided to stop for a few days at the state park

— often used with over

stopped over to visit his cousins

(3) : to make a regularly scheduled halt (as for taking on or dropping passengers)

the express train doesn't stop at this station

the bus stops at the next corner

b. : to spend a short time : reside temporarily

arranged to stop at a hotel — Agnes S. Turnbull

c. chiefly Britain : remain , stay

she'd stop in bed all morning — Rosamond Lehmann

his dad fell into that terrible rage with him because he had stopped out all night — Edith Sitwell

d. : to make a brief call : drop in — usually used with by

suggested that she stop by that evening to talk things over — Polly Adler

5. : to bring up a narrow wooden strip (as a molding) against a flat or curved surface

6. : to become choked : clog

the sink stops up constantly because of the gooey messes the children pour into it

Synonyms:

quit , desist , cease , discontinue : stop is a rather general term indicating suspending or interfering with moving or progressing

the entrance of the judge, and a consequent great stir and settling-down in the court, stopped the dialogue — Charles Dickens

you might as well try and stop a young tank — Rose Macaulay

cease may differ in applying to conditions, states, or existences rather than to actions or activities

stopped (but not ceased ) the car

the infielder stopped (but not ceased ) the ball

but often the two are interchangeable

iron works … were erected here in 1795 but ceased activity in 1838 — American Guide Series: New Hampshire

these people suddenly ceased muttering, but redoubled their gesticulations — E.A.Poe

cease may or may not carry with it the idea of gradual slow cessation of activity

the soft woman gradually ceased her chirp — George Meredith

outside in the street all noises suddenly ceased — Sherwood Anderson

desist , a somewhat more formal word, is likely to indicate holding off, forebearing, refraining from going on, through self-restraint, consideration of others, expediency, or lack of success

had desisted in his effort to press love upon her because they were to be married — Sherwood Anderson

swindler and murderer desisted because they felt the latent strength of his personality — Osbert Sitwell

discontinue is not a very expressive word; it stresses the fact of suspension of some activity, course, accustomed occupation, or habit and may be used more freely than others in this set with tangible objects

discontinue the manufacture of motorcycles or motorbikes as part of the company's manufactures

quit may suggest either finality or peremptoriness in a person's stopping an activity or employment or acceptance of defeat and futility in continuing an endeavor or struggle

such of the owners as were not wedded to the industry quit — P.A.Rollins

had no thought of quitting the struggle — Sir Winston Churchill

Synonym: see in addition reside .

- stop one's mouth

- stop the show

II. noun

( -s )

Etymology: Middle English, from stoppen, v.

1. : cessation , end , finish

his death put a stop to the project — J.W.Ellison b. 1891

time, that takes survey of all the world, must have a stop — Shakespeare

2.

a.

(1) : a graduated set of organ pipes of like kind and tone quality

(2) : a corresponding set of vibrators or reeds of a reed organ

(3) : stop knob

pulled out all the stops

b. : a means of regulating the pitch of a musical instrument: as

(1) : the closing of an aperture in the air passage of a wind instrument

(2) : pressure of the finger upon a string of a string instrument

c. : a device in a harpsichord or similar instrument for modifying the power and quality of the tones produced

3. : something that impedes, obstructs, or brings to a halt : impediment , obstacle , obstruction

as soon as I had enough men I put out stops on the motor road — Yale Review

a groove is made on one side of a length of bone or horn and a raised knob or stop is left at one end — Agnes Allen

as

a. : dam , weir

b.

(1) : an opaque barrier for preventing the passage of light through certain portions of an optical system (as at the margin, in the axial zone, or in radial sectors) ; specifically : the aperture of a camera lens

(2) : a marking of a series (as of f-numbers) on a camera for indicating settings of the diaphragm

c. : a valve so placed to be used as a shutoff (as in disconnecting water or gas service)

d. : a drain plug : stopper

4.

a.

(1) : a device or piece (as a pin block, pawl, or strip of wood) for arresting or limiting motion or for determining the position to which a part will be brought

(2) : a short feather key

b. : stopwork

c.

(1) : a small piece of material (as canvas or line) used to bind or secure something

secure a furled sail with stops

(2) : a projection on a mast or spar to support something or keep it from slipping down

d. : a bookbinder's hand tool used to stop a line at its intersection with another and thereby save mitering

e.

(1) : margin stop

(2) : a tabulator stop

5.

a. : the act of impeding or bringing to a halt or the state of being impeded or brought to a halt : check

the shortstop made a great stop on a hard grounder

the train was brought to a sudden stop

b. : a guard or counter in boxing that prevents an opponent's blow from landing ; especially : a blow delivered as the opponent is in the act of leading

c. : the act of preventing a goal (as in hockey, soccer) by catching or deflecting a shot : save

6.

a. : the act of coming to a halt : a cessation of motion or operation

a brief stop for mopping-up operations — Current Biography

within six months she was mastering spirals, sit-down spins and stops — Time

b. : a halt in a journey or trip : stay

made a long stop to see the famous ruins

the ship made a brief stop to refuel

c. : a point or place for stopping

an old town by the sea is a must stop — Eleanor Early

specifically : a point at which a public means of conveyance (as a train, bus, or airplane) regularly stops to take on or let off passengers or goods

7.

a. chiefly Britain : any of several punctuation marks

if commas are used rightly the other stops will sort themselves out — Ernest Gowers

b. — used in telegrams and cables to indicate a period

c. : a pause or break in a verse that marks the end of a grammatical unit

8.

a.

(1) : an order stopping payment (as of a check or note) by a bank

(2) : the act of making such an order

b. : stop order

9. : a consonant in the articulation of which there is a stage (as in the t of apt, the p of apt, and the g of tiger ) when the breath passage is completely closed at the nose by raised velum and elsewhere by lips, tongue, or glottis — compare nasal II 2a

10.

a. : a card in some games (as Michigan or fan-tan) that stops a sequence when played ; also : the termination of a sequence by such a card

b. stops plural but singular in construction : any of several games having as an essential feature the stopping of play when the card specified to be played next is not available ; specifically : michigan

11. : a depression in the face of an animal at the junction of forehead and foreface: as

a. : an indentation between muzzle and forehead in a dog (as a bulldog) — see dog illustration

b. : an angular indentation between bill and forehead in some pigeons

c. : a line where the forehead meets the snout in a dolphin

12. chiefly Britain : one posted to prevent game animals from breaking away when located

III. adjective

1. : serving to stop : designed to stop

stop line

stop signal

stop valve

2. : marked by stoppage of sound

stop consonant

stop articulation

IV. verb

- stop a stock

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.