anchor

American  

[ang-ker] / ˈæŋ kər /

noun

• anchors
  plural

1. any of various devices dropped by a chain, cable, or rope to the bottom of a body of water for preventing or restricting the motion of a vessel or other floating object, typically having broad, hooklike arms that bury themselves in the bottom to provide a firm hold.

2. any similar device for holding fast or checking motion.

   an anchor of stones.

3. any device for securing a suspension or cantilever bridge at either end.

4. any of various devices, as a metal tie, for binding one part of a structure to another.

5. a person or thing that can be relied on for support, stability, or security; mainstay.

   Hope was his only anchor.

6. Radio and Television. Also a person who is the main broadcaster on a program of news, sports, etc., and who usually also serves as coordinator of all participating broadcasters during the program; anchorman or anchorwoman; anchorperson.

7. Television. a program that attracts many viewers who are likely to stay tuned to the network for the programs that follow.

8. Also called anchor store.  a well-known store, especially a department store, that attracts customers to the shopping center in which it is located.

9. Slang. automotive brakes.

10. Military. a key position in defense lines.

11. Sports. Also

    1. the person on a team, especially a relay team, who competes last.

    2. the person farthest to the rear on a tug-of-war team.

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verb (used with object)

• anchors,
  present (3rd person singular)
• anchored,
  past participle,  past
• anchoring
  present participle

1. to hold fast by an anchor.

2. to fix or fasten; affix firmly.

   The button was anchored to the cloth with heavy thread.

3. to act or serve as an anchor for.

   He anchored the evening news.

verb (used without object)

• anchors,
  present (3rd person singular)
• anchored,
  past participle,  past
• anchoring
  present participle

1. to drop anchor; lie or ride at anchor.

   The ship anchored at dawn.

2. to keep hold or be firmly fixed.

   The insect anchored fast to its prey.

3. Sports, Radio and Television. to act or serve as an anchor.

idioms

1. drop anchor, to anchor a vessel.

   They dropped anchor in a bay to escape the storm.

2. drag anchor, (of a vessel) to move with a current or wind because an anchor has failed to hold.

3. weigh anchor, to raise the anchor.

   We will weigh anchor at dawn.

4. at anchor, held in place by an anchor.

   The luxury liner is at anchor in the harbor.

anchor British  

/ ˈæŋkə /

noun

1. any of several devices, usually of steel, attached to a vessel by a cable and dropped overboard so as to grip the bottom and restrict the vessel's movement

2. an object used to hold something else firmly in place

   the rock provided an anchor for the rope

3. a source of stability or security

   religion was his anchor

4. 1. a metal cramp, bolt, or similar fitting, esp one used to make a connection to masonry

   2. ( as modifier )

      anchor bolt

      anchor plate

5. 1. the rear person in a tug-of-war team

   2. short for anchorman anchorwoman

6. (of a vessel) anchored

7. to anchor a vessel

8. See drag

9. to be anchored

10. to raise a vessel's anchor or (of a vessel) to have its anchor raised in preparation for departure

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verb

1. to use an anchor to hold (a vessel) in one place

2. to fasten or be fastened securely; fix or become fixed firmly

3. (tr) radio television to act as an anchorman on

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• reanchor
  verb
• anchorable
  adjective
• anchorless
  adjective
• anchorlike
  adjective
• unanchored
  adjective
• well-anchored
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• anchors
  plural

Participles

• anchoring
  present
• anchored
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• anchor
  simple
• anchors
  simple
• have anchored
  perfect
• has anchored
  perfect
• am anchoring
  progressive
• are anchoring
  progressive
• is anchoring
  progressive
• have been anchoring
  perfect progressive
• has been anchoring
  perfect progressive

Past

• anchored
  simple
• had anchored
  perfect
• was anchoring
  progressive
• were anchoring
  progressive
• had been anchoring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will anchor
  simple
• will have anchored
  perfect
• will be anchoring
  progressive
• will have been anchoring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of anchor

First recorded before 900; Middle English anker, ancre, Old English ancor, ancer, ancra (compare Old Frisian, Middle Dutch, Middle Low German anker ), from Latin anc(h)ora, from Greek ánkȳra

Explanation

On a boat, an anchor is a heavy object attached to a rope. You toss it overboard, it sinks to the bottom, and your vessel doesn't move. Anchor has the sense of what holds something in place. When you anchor a bookshelf to the wall, you affix it to the wall so it won't come down. The anchor of a relay race is the last person to run. It's their job to hold the team's lead. And on televised news, the anchor is the person who is front and center delivering the current events, the one who draws viewers to the news on that particular station.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

anchor anchors anchored anchoring

Chicago’s main financial anchor is its pension obligations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

They’re like children’s playgrounds, with stacks and gangways and a giant anchor beneath.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026

Glucksmann was meanwhile targeted through false information about his partner, the star news anchor Lea Salame who presents the main evening news programme on France 2 TV.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

Dr. Oz came into the fold, Winfrey said, by way of introduction from her best friend, fellow television personality and news anchor Gayle King.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Maybe, he decided, before they weighed anchor, he’d write a letter to Elizabeth.

From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham

Banner-University Medical Center anchors an excellent healthcare system that features a high ratio of primary-care doctors per capita.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

Subsea internet cables, which may run for thousands of kilometres beneath oceans, are occasionally damaged by ship anchors.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

Ratings surged and anchors became just as popular as the celebrity athletes they covered.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Mr. Lloyd likes to say that Higgins somehow posthumously led him to drummer Eric Harland, who anchors his current quartet.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

The babble of news anchors with their interactive electoral maps always jangled my nerves.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Sahir West, a Baltimore native, was similarly anchored by gratitude throughout his move to UCLA.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

The vessel remains anchored off England's southern coast.

From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026

And its defense team, anchored by the First Amendment firm Ballard Spahr, has used that obligation to go straight at the people closest to Trump on Jan. 6.

From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026

It’s back because the portfolio finally caught up to where the value is: across public markets, private equity, venture capital and real assets, anchored by a fixed-income allocation that pays you to wait.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026

It was suspended by two jointed robotic arms anchored to my apartment’s walls and ceiling.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Unlike virtual dark tourism that allows for “armchair travel” to real-world dark heritage sites, there is no physical location anchoring the Backrooms nor any historical tragedy to commemorate.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 26, 2026

For Federated Hermes, AI and a tightening Bank of Japan are the major themes anchoring its largest positions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

The buoys mark a voluntary no-anchor zone, to encourage water users to avoid anchoring, reduce seabed damage, and protect declining seagrass habitats.

From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026

First, how does the family fund long-term care without liquidating the retirement assets that are anchoring the financial plan?

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026

He puts his other hand on my waist like he’s anchoring us.

From "The Sun Is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon

Related Words

• attach
• dock
• fasten
• fix
• moor
• secure
• tie up