stope

[ stohp ]

noun

any excavation made in a mine, especially from a steeply inclined vein, to remove the ore that has been rendered accessible by the shafts and drifts.

verb (used with or without object),stoped, stop·ing.

to mine or work by stopes.

Origin of stope

1740–50; apparently <Low German stope;see stoop²

Words Nearby stope

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use stope in a sentence

Then there was silence—for Harry had left the fissure to go into the stope and make an investigation.
The Cross-Cut | Courtney Ryley Cooper
He gave me a boost against the smooth wall of the stope, and my clawing fingers caught on the edge of a sharp shelf of stone.
The La Chance Mine Mystery | Susan Carleton Jones
And I trusted Macartney, or any man he had left in the ink-dark stope, would be fool enough to jump at me for what I said.
The La Chance Mine Mystery | Susan Carleton Jones
But stealing gold was exactly what we were doing, only it wasn't in Thompson's old stope.
The La Chance Mine Mystery | Susan Carleton Jones
Collins pushed it aside, and the two of us were out—out of Thompson's stope, where Macartney had meant me to lie till I died!
The La Chance Mine Mystery | Susan Carleton Jones

British Dictionary definitions for stope

stope

/ (stəʊp) /

noun

a steplike excavation made in a mine to extract ore

verb

to mine (ore, etc) by cutting stopes

Origin of stope

C18: probably from Low German stope; see stoop ²

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

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