scupper 1
/skup"euhr/ , n.
1. Naut. a drain at the edge of a deck exposed to the weather, for allowing accumulated water to drain away into the sea or into the bilges. Cf. freeing port .
2. a drain, closed by one or two flaps, for allowing water from the sprinkler system of a factory or the like to run off a floor of the building to the exterior.
3. any opening in the side of a building, as in a parapet, for draining off rain water.
[ 1475-85; earlier skoper. See SCOOP, -ER 1 ]
scupper 2
/skup"euhr/ , v.t. Brit.
1. Mil. to overwhelm; surprise and destroy, disable, or massacre.
2. Informal. to prevent from happening or succeeding; ruin; wreck.
[ 1880-85; orig. uncert. ]