stop up
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Fill a hole or gap, block an opening or passage. For example, We need to stop up the chinks in the walls, or The sink is stopped up; it won't drain. This idiom was at first put simply as stop, the adverb up being added only in the early 1700s.
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON PARENTHESES AND BRACKETS APLENTY!
Set some time apart to test your bracket symbol knowledge, and see if you can keep your parentheses, squares, curlies, and angles all straight!
Question 1 of 7
Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?
First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.
First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.
First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.
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Words nearby stop up
stop street, stopt, stop the clock, stop thrust, stop time, stop up, stop volley, stopwatch, stopword, stop-work, storable
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.