See Also: Stop order (or stop)(finance)
Stop order (or stop)(money)
stop(1)(dictionary)
bus stop(dictionary)
stop(dictionary)
STOP(medicine)
stop-go(dictionary)
stop-and-go(dictionary)
stop(2)(dictionary)
one-stop(dictionary)

stop (iou)



stop verb. Infl. -pp-. Pa. t. & pple stopped, stopt.
[Old English (for)stoppian, corresp. to Old Frisian stoppia, Middle Low German stoppen, Old High German stopfon (German stopfen), from West Germanic, from late Latin stuppare to stuff.]
I.
verb trans. Block or obstruct (the external opening of the eyes, ears, etc.) (lit. & fig.). Now chiefly in stop one's ears, stop a person's mouth below. OE.
verb trans. Make (a road, channel, etc.) impassable by blocking up or obstructing its passage or outlet; close (a road) to public access. Freq. foll. by up. ME.
Society The..carriage stopping the way.
verb trans. Staunch the bleeding of, bind up, (a wound). ME-E17.
verb trans. Shut up in a place; keep in. ME-L17.
Shakespeare Comedy of Errors Stop in your wind sir.
verb trans.
a. Stuff (the inside of a bird, fruit, etc.) preparatory to cooking; pad (a garment, cushion, etc.). ME-E17.
b. Pack tightly, cram (a receptacle with something). obsolete exc. Scot. LME.
c. Plug (the feet of a horse) with something as a dressing. Now rare or obsolete. L16.
a. verb trans. Block or close up (an entrance, aperture, vent, etc.). ME.
Shakespeare As You Like It Stop that, 'twill fly..out at the chimney.
b. verb trans. Act as a block to, choke up. Also (in pass.), be choked up with (dirt etc.). Now usu. foll. by up. E16.
c. verb trans. Block the mouth of (a fox's earth) prior to a hunt. Also, block up the earths in (a particular district). M16.
d. verb intrans. Become choked up. L16-L18.
e. verb trans. Music. Close (a finger-hole or aperture of a wind instrument) so as to alter the pitch and produce a particular note. M19.
verb trans.
a. Fill up, repair, (a leak, hole, crack, etc.); fill in fissures or holes in (a surface to be painted, covered with a wash, etc.). Also foll. by up. ME.
W. R. H. Trowbridge It would cost..a lot to stop the leaks in a seven-acre roof.
b. Plug (the seams of a boat) with oakum or other caulking material. Formerly also, caulk (a ship). M16.
c. Plug the cavity of (a decayed tooth) with a filling or stopping. L16.
verb trans.
a. Close (a vessel or receptacle) by blocking the mouth with a plug, stopper, etc.; close (the mouth of a vessel). Also, shut up (something) in a stoppered vessel. Also foll. by down, up. LME.
J. Tyndall A tube..stopped watertight will answer for this experiment.
b. Plug the upper end of (an organ-pipe) giving a note an octave lower. L17.
verb trans.
a. Close up, obstruct, (a duct or passage in the body); block the passage or passages of (a bodily organ). Also foll. by up. LME.
b. In pass. Of a person: be afflicted with an obstruction or blockage of the bodily passages or organs. LME-L16.
c. Make constipated. M16-M18.
verb trans.
a. Thrust or push (a thing) in or into a receptacle or place. Chiefly Scot. LME.
b. Thrust in the point or end of (a thing), insert; put in (a plant). Scot. & north. M18.
verb trans. Mend (a garment); repair (cloth, metalwork) with an inferior material. L15-M17.
verb trans. Tamp (tobacco) in a pipe. rare. M19.
II.
verb trans.
a. Prevent or stem the passage of; dam or block the channel of (running water etc.); keep out or exclude (light, the weather, etc.). LME.
Gibbon The course of the river was stopped.., and the waters were confined.
b. Staunch (bleeding, blood). L16.
verb trans.
a. Check or impede the onward movement of; bring to a standstill or state of rest; cause to halt on a journey. Also, prevent the departure of. LME.
J. Conrad The gale had freshened..stopping the traffic on the river.
b. Fencing & Boxing etc. Check (an opponent, a stroke, a blow, etc.) with a counter movement or stroke; counter (a blow etc.). E18.
c. Shoot or bring down (game, a bird). Also, (of a bullet or wound) arrest the rush of (a charging enemy or wild animal) with rifle-fire. M19.
W. Lennox At the..[pigeon-shooting] handicap Moncrieff stopped a bird at seventy-five yards.
d. Boxing. Defeat (an opponent) by a knockout. Orig. US. L19.
e. Be hit by (a bullet). Freq. in stop one, be hit or killed. colloq. (orig. Military). E20.
f. Drink. Chiefly in stop one, take a drink. Austral. slang. E20.
g. Racing. Check (a horse) in order to stay out of the running; pull, rein in. M20.
verb trans.
a. Withhold or deduct (a sum of money) in paying wages or repaying a debt, in order to cover rent, special clothing, etc. LME.
Spectator Sixpence a day stopped out of his money.
b. Withhold (goods) as security or in lieu of payment. M18.
verb trans.
a. Cause (a person) to desist from or pause in a course of action or conduct. Freq. foll. by from, in. LME.
E. M. Forster You have stopped me from brooding.
b. Hold (a thing) in check; cause (a thing) to cease action. LME.
G. Villiers Hold, stop your murd'ring hands.
c. Cause (a person) to break off from speaking or pause in a conversation. M16.
F. E. Gretton 'Yes, my lord; but ' Garrow stopped him short.
verb trans.
a. Restrain or prevent (a person) from an intended action. Also foll. by from. LME.
M. Kennedy Make an entrance if you like. I'm not stopping you.
b. Law. Bar, preclude; = ESTOP 2. M16-E18.
c. Stay or suspend (proceedings); prevent (a decree etc.) from taking effect. L17.
d. Of a camera: give a still picture of (a moving object). M20.
verb trans. Hamper or impede the course or progress of (affairs, a project, etc.); hinder (a person). LME-E18.
verb trans.
a. Put an end to (a movement, activity, course of events). LME.
C. P. Snow Briers stopped the jollity with a hard voice.
b. Prevent the onset of. M16.
verb trans. Music. Obtain the required pitch from (a string of a violin etc.) by pressing a finger down at the appropriate point; produce (a note, sound) by this means. L15.
verb trans.
a. Discontinue (an action, a sequence of actions, work, etc.). E16.
G. Vidal Wishing the man would..stop asking questions. R. Rendell It was..too early..to stop work.
b. Put an end to the issue or supply of (an allowance etc.). M19.
a. verb intrans. Real Tennis. Mark or record the chases. rare. Only in M16.
b. verb intrans. Cricket. Of a fielder: field the ball; (more fully stop behind) act as longstop. M18-M19.
c. verb trans. Real Tennis. Keep (the ball) from entering the dedans, winning-gallery, or grille. Now rare. E19.
d. verb trans. Cricket. Of a batsman: play (a ball) defensively, without attempting to hit it away. M19.
verb trans. Cause (a machine or piece of mechanism) to cease operation. M16.
verb trans. Intercept and detain (goods, post, etc.) in transit. E17.
verb trans. Nautical.
a. Bring (a ship) to anchor by gradually checking the cable. Chiefly in stop the cable, prevent the cable running out too fast. E17.
b. Make fast (a cable etc.). L18.
verb trans. Horticulture. Pinch out the head of (a plant); remove (a shoot or a portion of it) by pinching. L17.
verb trans. Instruct a bank to withhold payment on (a cheque etc.). E18.
verb trans. Architecture. Cause (a rib, chamfer, moulding, etc.) to terminate in a specified form or position. M19.
verb trans. Phonetics. Check the flow of (the breath) to form a stop consonant. M19.
Bridge. Be able to prevent opponents from taking all the tricks in (a suit). E20.
III.
verb intrans. (Of a thing) cease from motion or action; (of a process) cease activity; come to an end; (of a machine, clock, etc.) cease working. E16.
P. G. Wodehouse His watch..seemed to have stopped.
verb intrans.
a. Cease from forward movement, come to a standstill or position of rest; spec. (of a horse) check, pull up. M16.
G. Vidal They stopped at the second floor.
b. Pause on the or one's way (to do something). E18.
J. Ruskin Everybody stopped as they passed, to look at his cart.
verb intrans.
a. Leave off or pause momentarily in an activity; pause in speech; break off a conversation. L16.
b. In imper. Halt! Wait a moment! L16.
O. Wilde 'Stop!' cried Virginia, stamping her foot.
c. Bridge. Refrain from increasing one's bid beyond a specified level. Freq. foll. by in. M20.
verb intrans.
a. Desist in a course of action or from something one is accustomed to do. L17.
E. Caldwell When I get started.., I don't want to stop.
b. Foll. by at: hesitate, hold back. Freq. in stop at nothing below. L17.
J. Steinbeck There is no crime he will stop at.
c. Set a limit on one's activity or behaviour at a certain point; refrain from exceeding a certain degree or extent. M18.
verb intrans. Make a halt on a journey; (of a bus, train, etc.) halt at a designated place to pick up and set down passengers. M18.
G. Greene The train stopped at Watford.
verb intrans. (Of something immaterial) have its limit of operation at a specified point; (of a series, something material) come to an end. Freq. foll. by at. M18.
R. Challoner The severities exercised against catholics did not stop here.
verb intrans.
a. Stay as a visitor, resident, or guest. L18.
V. Woolf Come and stop with us in September.
b. Remain (for a meal etc., at home); prolong one's stay in a place, stay on. E19.
Motor Cycle News Stop for the last six races.
IV.
verb trans. Provide with stops or punctuation marks, punctuate. L18.
verb trans. & intrans. Prosody. Conclude or divide (a line of spoken verse) with a stop or break. Cf. STOP noun2 16b. M19.
Phrases, & with adverbs & prepositions in specialized senses: stop a gap: see GAP noun. stop a packet: see PACKET noun 3. stop a person's eyes cover a person's eyes. stop a person's mouth: see MOUTH noun. stop a person's sight cover a person's eyes. stop a person's way stand in a person's way (lit. & fig.), bar a person's passage. stop at nothing: see NOTHING pronoun & noun. stop behind: see sense 22c above. stop by (orig. N. Amer.) (a) pay a brief visit; (b) call at, visit (a place). stop dead (cause to) come to an abrupt halt; (cause to) cease or leave off abruptly. stop down Photography reduce the aperture of (a lens) with a diaphragm. stop in US pay a brief visit, drop in. stop off: see stop over below. stop on continue in one place or employment. stop one: see senses 14e, f above. stop one's ears (a) block one's ears, esp. with the hands or fingers, to avoid hearing; (b) fig. make oneself deaf to something, refuse to listen, close one's mind against arguments, etc. stop one's nose, stop one's nostrils block the nose to avoid an unpleasant smell etc. stop out (a) stay out late; (b) N. Amer. interrupt one's studies at college for a time in order to pursue some other activity; (c) Etching cover (parts of a plate) to prevent the acid from taking effect. stop off, stop over (orig. US) make a halt, break one's journey (at a place). stop payment (a) declare oneself unable to meet one's financial obligations; (b) instruct a bank to withhold payment on a cheque etc. stop short = stop dead above. stop short at, stop short of: see SHORT adverb. stop the breath of (now rare or obsolete) prevent the breathing of, suffocate, choke; cause to die. stop the cable: see sense 25 above. stop the press suspend the operation of printing, esp. so as to insert late news. stop the show (orig. US) cause an interruption of a performance by provoking prolonged applause or laughter, or requests for encores (cf. show-stopper s.v. SHOW noun1). stop the tide Nautical prevent a ship being carried with the tide. stop thief! a cry for help to arrest a running thief. stop up stay up instead of going to bed. stop your gab: see GAB noun2. when the kissing has to stop: see KISSING verbal noun.
Comb.: (See also combs. of STOP noun2.) Esp. with ref. to the technique of stopping a cine camera between frames so as to create special effects, esp. animation, as stop-action, stop-frame, stop-shot, etc. Special combs., as stop-and-frisk, stop-and-search adjectives of or pertaining to the stopping and searching of suspects by the police; stop-and-start adjective alternately stopping and starting; stop-loss adjective (of an order to sell stock etc.) intended to save further loss than has been already incurred by falling prices; stop-me-and-buy-one noun & adjective (of or pertaining to) a travelling vendor, esp. one selling ice-creams; stop-motion a device for automatically stopping a machine or engine when something has gone wrong; stop-off (a) an act of stopping off or halting for a visit; (b) a place where one stops off; stop-out (a) colloq. a person who stays out late; (b) N. Amer. a student who interrupts his or her studies for a time in order to pursue some other activity; an interruption of studies for this purpose; stopover (a) an act of stopping over or breaking one's journey; (b) a place where one stops over; stop press noun & adjective (of or pertaining to) late news inserted in a newspaper after printing has begun; (designating) a column in a newspaper reserved for this; stop-start adjective = stop-and-start above; stop-tap the time at which drinks cease to be served in a public house; stop-water Nautical (a) a thing fixed or towed overboard to reduce a ship's speed; (b) a plug or other device for making a joint watertight.
stoppa'bility noun (rare) lack of resistance to stoppage L19.
stoppable adjective able to be stopped or prevented (earlier in UNSTOPPABLE adjective) M20.