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HALTERES

 - 6 dictionary results

hal⋅ter

1[hawl-ter]
–noun
1. a rope or strap with a noose or headstall for leading or restraining horses or cattle.
2. a rope with a noose for hanging criminals; the hangman's noose; gallows.
3. death by hanging.
4. Also called halter top. a woman's top, secured behind the neck and across the back, leaving the arms, shoulders, upperback, and often the midriff bare.
–verb (used with object)
5. to put a halter on; restrain as by a halter.
6. to hang (a person).
–adjective
7. (of a garment) having a neckline consisting of a cord, strap, band, or the like that is attached to or forms part of the front of a backless and sleeveless bodice and extends around the neck: a halter dress.

Origin:
bef. 1000; ME; OE hælfter; c. G Halfter


hal⋅ter⋅like, adjective

hal⋅ter

2[hal-ter]
–noun, plural hal⋅te⋅res [hal-teer-eez] .
one of a pair of slender, club-shaped appendages on the hindmost body segment of a fly, serving to maintain its balance in flight.
Also called balancer.


Origin:
< NL, special use of L halter jumping weight < Gk háltēr, akin to hállesthai, L salīre to jump (see saltant )

halt⋅er

3[hawl-ter]
–noun
a person who halts or brings to a stop.

Origin:
halt 1 + -er 1

halt⋅er

4[hawl-ter]
–noun
a person who halts, falters, or hesitates.

Origin:
1400–50; late ME; see halt 2 , -er 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To HALTERES
hal·ter 2   (hôl'tər, hāl'-)   
n.   pl. hal·ter·es (-tîr'ēz)
Either of the small, clublike balancing organs that are the rudimentary hind wings of flies and other dipterous insects. Also called balancer.

[Latin haltēr, lead weights used in leaping exercises, from sing. of Greek haltēres, from hallesthai, to jump; see sel- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

halter 
O.E. hælftre "halter for horses," from W.Gmc. *halftra- "that by which something is held" (cf. O.H.G. halftra, M.Du. halfter, see helve). In women's clothing sense, originally "strap attached to the top of a backless bodice and looped around the neck," 1935, later extended to the tops themselves.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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