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rope - 7 dictionary results
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rope

  [rohp] noun, verb, roped, rop⋅ing.
Use rope in a Sentence
–noun
1. a strong, thick line or cord, commonly one composed of twisted or braided strands of hemp, flax, or the like, or of wire or other material.
2. a lasso.
3. ropes,
a. the cords used to enclose a prize ring or other space.
b. Informal. the operations of a business or the details of any undertaking: The new employee didn't take long to learn the ropes.
4. a hangman's noose, halter, or cord.
5. the sentence or punishment of death by hanging.
6. a quantity of material or a number of things twisted or strung together in the form of a cord: a rope of tobacco.
7. a stringy, viscid, or glutinous formation in a liquid: ropes of slime.
–verb (used with object)
8. to tie, bind, or fasten with a rope.
9. to enclose, partition, or mark off with a rope or ropes (often fol. by off).
10. to catch with a lasso; lasso.
11. Nautical. to reinforce (a sail or awning) with a boltrope.
–verb (used without object)
12. to be drawn out into a filament of thread; become ropy.
—Verb phrase
13. rope in, Informal. to lure or entice, esp. by employing deception: The swindler had roped in a number of gullible persons.
—Idioms
14. at the end of one's rope, at the end of one's endurance or means; at the limit: With all her savings gone and bills piling up, she was at the end of her rope.
15. give someone enough rope, to allow a person complete freedom to continue his or her misdeeds in hope that retribution will follow.
16. on the ropes,
a. Boxing. in a defenseless position, as leaning against the ropes to keep from falling.
b. Informal. in a desperate or hopeless position; close to defeat or failure: By repeatedly undercutting his prices, his competitors soon had him on the ropes.
Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME rop(e), rap(e), OE rāp; c. D reep, G Reif; (v.) ME, deriv. of the n.

Related forms:
roper, noun
ropelike, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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rope   (rōp)   
n.  
  1. A flexible heavy cord of tightly intertwined hemp or other fiber.
  2. A string of items attached in one line by or as if by twisting or braiding: a rope of onions.
  3. A sticky glutinous formation of stringy matter in a liquid.
    1. A cord with a noose at one end for hanging a person.
    2. Execution or death by hanging: to die by the rope.
  5. A lasso or lariat.
  6. ropes Sports Several cords strung between poles to enclose a boxing or wrestling ring.
  7. ropes Informal Specialized procedures or details: learn the ropes; know the ropes.
v.   roped, rop·ing, ropes

v.   tr.
  1. To tie or fasten with or as if with rope.
  2. To enclose, separate, or partition with or as if with a rope: rope off the scene of the crime.
  3. To catch with a rope or lasso.
  4. Informal To trick or deceive: An unscrupulous salesperson roped us into buying worthless property.
v.   intr.
To become like a cord or rope.

[Middle English, from Old English rāp.]
rop'er n.
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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Rope

Rope\, n. [AS. r[=a]p; akin to D. reep, G. reif ring hoop, Icel. reip rope, Sw. rep, Dan. reb, reeb Goth. skaudaraip latchet.]

1. A large, stout cord, usually one not less than an inch in circumference, made of strands twisted or braided together. It differs from cord, line, and string, only in its size. See Cordage.

2. A row or string consisting of a number of things united, as by braiding, twining, etc.; as, a rope of onions.

3. pl. The small intestines; as, the ropes of birds.

Rope ladder, a ladder made of ropes.

Rope mat., a mat made of cordage, or strands of old rope.

Rope of sand, something of no cohession or fiber; a feeble union or tie; something not to be relied upon.

Rope pump, a pump in which a rapidly running endless rope raises water by the momentum communicated to the water by its adhesion to the rope.

Rope transmission (Mach.), a method of transmitting power, as between distant places, by means of endless ropes running over grooved pulleys.

Rope's end, a piece of rope; especially, one used as a lash in inflicting punishment.

To give one rope, to give one liberty or license; to let one go at will uncheked.

Rope

Rope\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Roped; p. pr. & vb. n. Roping.] To be formed into rope; to draw out or extend into a filament or thread, as by means of any glutinous or adhesive quality.

Let us not hang like ropingicicles Upon our houses' thatch. --Shak.

Rope

Rope\, v. t. 1. To bind, fasten, or tie with a rope or cord; as, to rope a bale of goods. Hence:

2. To connect or fasten together, as a party of mountain climbers, with a rope.

3. To partition, separate, or divide off, by means of a rope, so as to include or exclude something; as, to rope in, or rope off, a plot of ground; to rope out a crowd.

4. To lasso (a steer, horse). [Colloq. U.S.]

5. To draw, as with a rope; to entice; to inveigle; to decoy; as, to rope in customers or voters. [Slang, U.S.]

6. To prevent from winning (as a horse), by pulling or curbing. [Racing Slang, Eng.]
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : rope
Spanish: cuerda,
German: das Seil,
Japanese: なわ
More Translations »

rope 
O.E. rap, from P.Gmc. *raipaz (cf. O.N. reip, M.Du., Du. reep "rope," Goth. skauda-raip "shoe-lace," O.H.G., Ger. reif "ring, hoop"). Technically, only cordage above one inch in circumference and below 10 (bigger-around than that is a cable). Nautical use varies. Finnish raippa "hoop, rope, twig" is a Gmc. loan-word. The verb is attested from c.1300. To know the ropes (1840) is originally a seaman's term. Phrase on the ropes "defeated" is attested from 1924, a fig. extension from boxing. To be at the end of (one's) rope "out of resources and options" is first attested 1686. Formerly also in many slang and extended uses related to hanging, e.g. John Roper's window "a noose," rope-ripe "deserving to be hanged," both 16c.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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rope

In addition to the idiom beginning with rope, also see end of one's rope; enough rope; (show someone) know the ropes; on the ropes.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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