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strop
[ strop ]
/ strÉ’p /
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noun
any of several devices for sharpening razors, especially a strip of leather or other flexible material.
Also strap. Nautical, Machinery.
- a rope or a band of metal surrounding and supporting a block, deadeye, etc.
- a metal band surrounding the pulley of a block to transmit the load on the pulley to its hook or shackle.
- a rope sling, as for handling cargo.
- a ring or grommet of rope.
verb (used with object), stropped, strop·ping.
to sharpen on or as if on a strop.
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
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In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Origin of strop
before 1050; Middle English (noun), Old English; cognate with Dutch, Low German strop; all probably <Latin stroppus, variant of struppus strap
OTHER WORDS FROM strop
stropper, nounWords nearby strop
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use strop in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for strop
strop
/ (strÉ’p) /
noun
a leather strap or an abrasive strip for sharpening razors
a rope or metal band around a block or deadeye for support
mainly British informal a temper tantrumhe threw a strop and stormed off
verb strops, stropping or stropped
(tr) to sharpen (a razor, etc) on a strop
Word Origin for strop
C14 (in nautical use: a strip of rope): via Middle Low German or Middle Dutch strop, ultimately from Latin stroppus, from Greek strophos cord; see strophe
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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