I. stroke 1 S3 /strəʊk $ stroʊk/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Origin: Probably from an unrecorded Old English strac ]
1 . ILLNESS if someone has a stroke, an ↑ artery (=tube carrying blood) in their brain suddenly bursts or becomes blocked, so that they may die or be unable to use some muscles:
She died following a massive stroke.
have/suffer a stroke
I looked after my father after he had a stroke.
a stroke patient
2 . SWIMMING/ROWING
a) one of a set of movements in swimming or rowing in which you move your arms or the ↑ oar forward and then back:
She swam with strong steady strokes.
b) a style of swimming or rowing:
the breast stroke
3 . SPORT the action of hitting the ball in games such as tennis, ↑ golf , and ↑ cricket :
a backhand stroke
4 . PEN/BRUSH
a) a single movement of a pen or brush when you are writing or painting:
A few strokes of her pen brought out his features clearly.
b) a line made by a pen or brush:
the thick downward strokes of the characters
5 . at a/one stroke with a single sudden action:
At one stroke, the country lost two outstanding leaders.
6 . on the stroke of seven/nine etc at exactly seven o'clock etc:
She arrived home on the stroke of midnight.
The only goal of the match came on the stroke of half time.
7 . stroke of luck/fortune something lucky that happens to you unexpectedly:
In a stroke of luck, a suitable organ donor became available.
8 . stroke of genius/inspiration etc a very good idea about what to do to solve a problem:
It was a stroke of genius to film the movie in Toronto.
9 . HIT an action of hitting someone with something such as a whip or thin stick:
He cried out at each stroke of the whip.
10 . A MOVEMENT OF YOUR HAND a gentle movement of your hand over something:
I gave her hair a gentle stroke.
11 . with/at a stroke of the pen if someone in authority does something with a stroke of the pen, they sign an official document to make a decision with important and serious results:
He had the power to order troops home with a stroke of his pen.
12 . not do a stroke (of work) British English informal to not do any work at all
13 . stroke of lightning a bright flash of lightning, especially one that hits something
14 . CLOCK/BELL a single sound made by a clock giving the hours, or by a bell, ↑ gong etc
15 . put somebody off their stroke British English informal to make someone stop giving all their attention to what they are doing:
Seeing Frank watching me put me off my stroke.
16 . IN NUMBERS British English used when you are saying a number written with the mark (/) in it SYN slash :
The serial number is seventeen stroke one (=17/1) .
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ have/suffer a stroke
My father had a stroke.
▪ a stroke leaves somebody paralysed (=someone can no longer move as the result of a stroke)
Two years later she had a stroke which left her paralysed.
■ adjectives
▪ a massive/major stroke (=one that has very bad effects)
Her brother has just died of a massive stroke.
▪ a minor/mild stroke (=one that does not have very bad effects)
She had a minor stroke five years ago.
▪ a fatal stroke (=one that kills someone)
He suffered a fatal stroke in April.
■ stroke + NOUN
▪ a stroke patient/victim
Some stroke victims recover fully.
II. stroke 2 BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Sense 1-2,4: Language: Old English ; Origin: stracian ]
[ Sense 3: Date: 1900-2000 ; Origin: ⇨ ↑ stroke 1 ]
1 . to move your hand gently over something:
He reached out and stroked her cheek tenderly.
2 . [always + adverb/preposition] to move something somewhere with gentle movements of your hand:
He lifted her face and stroked her hair from her eyes.
3 . [always + adverb/preposition] to hit or kick a ball with a smooth movement in games such as tennis, golf, and ↑ cricket :
He stroked the ball into an empty net, with a minute to go.
4 . stroke sb’s ego to say nice things to someone to make them feel good, especially because you want something from them
• • •
THESAURUS
■ touch somebody gently or lovingly
▪ stroke to move your hand gently over something, especially in a loving way:
She stroked the child’s hair.
|
Our cat won’t let people stroke him.
▪ pat to touch an animal or child lightly several times, with your hand flat:
He knelt down to pat the dog.
|
She patted the little boy’s head.
▪ pet to touch and move your hand gently over someone, especially an animal or child:
The goats, pigs, sheep, and cows here allow you to pet them.
▪ caress /kəˈres/ to gently touch a part of someone’s body in a loving way:
a mother caressing her child
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She caressed his cheek.
▪ fondle to touch a part of someone’s body in a loving or sexual way – use this especially about touching someone in a sexual way that is not wanted:
He tried to fondle her and she immediately pulled away from him.