stopper

[stop-er]

See more synonyms for stopper on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person or thing that stops.
a plug, cork, bung, or other piece for closing a bottle, tube, drain, or the like.
Informal. something or someone that commands attention, as an unusual window display or a flamboyant person.

Cards. a card in a suit that prevents the successive taking of all tricks in the suit by the opponents.
Baseball Slang. a formidably and consistently effective pitcher counted on to win, as a team's best starting pitcher or a superior reliever often called on to preserve a victory; pitching ace.

verb (used with object)

to close, secure, or fit with a stopper.

Origin of stopper

First recorded in 1470–80; stop + -er¹

Related formsstop·per·less, adjective

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

Related Words for stopper

lid, wad, cork, fill, bung, stopple

Examples from the Web for stopper

Historical Examples of stopper

Hurriedly I shot out the remainder of the stopper of straw, and crept from the hole.
Ranald Bannerman's Boyhood
George MacDonald
"Yes, but don't let's have a stopper over all, Tom," replied his father.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;
Various
He took the stopper out of the decanter and deliberately raised it to his nostrils.
The Missionary
George Griffith
She pulled aside the "stopper" of newspaper and thrust in the stick.
Ruth Fielding and the Gypsies
Alice B. Emerson
(1 )Turn the stopper through at least one revolution in each direction.
On Laboratory Arts
Richard Threlfall

British Dictionary definitions for stopper

stopper

noun

Also: stopple (ˈstɒpəl) a plug or bung for closing a bottle, pipe, duct, etc
a person or thing that stops or puts an end to something
bridge another name for stop (def. 39)

verb

Also: stopple (tr) to close or fit with a stopper

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

Word Origin and History for stopper

"glass plug for a bottle neck," 1660s, agent noun from stop (v.).