stripe
1 Americannoun
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a relatively long, narrow band of a different color, appearance, weave, material, or nature from the rest of a surface or thing.
the stripes of a zebra.
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a fabric or material containing such a band or bands.
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a strip of braid, tape, or the like.
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stripes,
-
a number or combination of such strips, worn on a military, naval, or other uniform as a badge of rank, service, good conduct, combat wounds, etc.
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Informal. status or recognition as a result of one's efforts, experience, or achievements.
She earned her stripes as a traveling sales representative and then moved up to district manager.
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a strip, or long, narrow piece of anything.
a stripe of beach.
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a streak or layer of a different nature within a substance.
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style, variety, sort, or kind.
a man of quite a different stripe.
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Also called magnetic stripe. Movies. a strip of iron oxide layer on the edge of a film that is used for recording and reproducing a magnetic sound track.
verb (used with object)
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stripes,
present (3rd person singular)
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striped,
past participle, past
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striping
present participle
noun
noun
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a relatively long band of distinctive colour or texture that differs from the surrounding material or background
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a fabric having such bands
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a strip, band, or chevron of fabric worn on a military uniform, etc, esp one that indicates rank
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kind; sort; type
a man of a certain stripe
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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stripesimple
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stripessimple
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have stripedperfect
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has stripedperfect
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am stripingprogressive
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are stripingprogressive
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is stripingprogressive
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have been stripingperfect progressive
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has been stripingperfect progressive
Past
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stripedsimple
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had stripedperfect
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was stripingprogressive
-
were stripingprogressive
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had been stripingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of stripe1
First recorded in 1620–30; probably from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German strīpe; see also strip 2, stripe 2
Origin of stripe2
First recorded in 1450–1500; late Middle English; obscurely akin to stripe 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
EBT cards are more susceptible to theft because most don't have a chip, only a magnetic stripe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
"Eventually you think, oh, how many more combinations of a stripe can I do?" he admits, before adding, "But so far so good."
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Baseball might no longer be the national pastime, but it’s a part of American culture, with fans of every political stripe in every state.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
Over time, his revolutionary stripe of paint would reach billions of people and guide drivers across the planet.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 4, 2026
There are other plants in the truck: Pink stripe phormium.
From "Counting by 7s" by Holly Goldberg Sloan
Businesses of all stripes are struggling to predict how long high energy costs will last.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
Costume designer Maya Edmond dresses Big Ant thematically: white tees when he’s trying to be good, black duds when his demons are winning and comic book-y jailbird stripes during his pivotal teenage arrest.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
The researchers then arranged horizontal and vertical stripes in systematic combinations.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
Older incumbents of all ideological stripes swept the state’s Democratic primaries Tuesday night.
From Slate ● Sep. 2, 2026
Chip had on his team sweatshirt too, but he wore it with his usual black joggers, the kind with stripes down the sides that taper around the ankles.
From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram
At Mitsuwa Marketplace, the sprawling Japanese supermarket outside Chicago, Pastry House Hippo sells a frankfurter inside a beautiful yeasty shell, striped with ketchup.
From Salon ● Sep. 7, 2026
The black-and-white striped mosquitoes were first detected in 2013 in California, likely arriving via human travel and cargo transport.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
Manchester United's new home kit, with its flat-knit striped collar and cuffs, is inspired by Red Devils kits from the late seventies.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
Tidy general stores, ice cream parlors and a Main Street lined with striped awnings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
Simon was correct, and yet a glimpse of something small and tiger striped flitted through the shadows.
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
We bought a bunch of road rental companies — all those orange barricades and cones and striping you see on the roads.
From MarketWatch ● May 6, 2026
If the lane striping isn’t perfect, though, the lane-keeping assist sometimes disables itself, so I don’t rely on it completely.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 20, 2025
Knitters can opt for smaller patterns that require less yarn, or use up leftover yarn through designs that allow for different yarns to be cobbled together, such as striping.
From Slate ● Sep. 2, 2025
They lived in the Mission District in San Francisco, and her father lost his job hand-painting the striping on Cadillac cars.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2025
Karl stood with his face to the charred building, soot striping it like war paint.
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
