doorstop

[dawr-stop, dohr-]

noun

a device for holding a door open, as a wedge or small weight.
Also called slamming stile, stop. (in a doorframe) a strip or projecting surface against which the door closes.
a device for preventing a door from striking a wall or an object on a wall, as a small rubber-covered projection.

Origin of doorstop

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75; door + stop

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for doorstop

Contemporary Examples of doorstop

Occasionally a pamphlet for a salsa class might be tossed on a doorstop or stuck on a pole near a bus stop.
Iran’s Becoming a Footloose Nation as Dance Lessons Spread
IranWire
January 2, 2015
Here are some of the juiciest bits of the 652-page doorstop.
Speed Read: The Juiciest Bits From a New Book on the Duke Lacrosse Scandal
William O’Connor
April 8, 2014
Beck proudly announces that he now uses a bust of TR as a doorstop in a symbolic show of his displeasure.
The GOP's War on Teddy Roosevelt
John Avlon
March 9, 2010

Historical Examples of doorstop

Then he put it on the rim of the chest in such a position that if the lid were to fall it would be stopped by the doorstop.
The Eyes Have It
Gordon Randall Garrett
Anne hugged Patricia, and departed for her own room, stumbling over the doorstop as she went out.
The Mystery of Arnold Hall
Helen M. Persons

British Dictionary definitions for doorstop

doorstop

noun

a heavy object, wedge, or other device which prevents an open door from moving
a projecting piece of rubber, etc, fixed to the floor to stop a door from striking a wall
informal a very thick book

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012