| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| stoop1 |
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| PRONUNCIATION: |  st p |
| VERB: | Inflected forms: stooped, stoop·ing, stoops
| | INTRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To bend forward and down from the waist or the middle of the back: had to stoop in order to fit into the cave. 2. To walk or stand, especially habitually, with the head and upper back bent forward. 3. To bend or sag downward. 4a. To lower or debase oneself. b. To descend from a superior position; condescend. 5. To yield; submit. 6. To swoop down, as a bird in pursuing its prey. | | TRANSITIVE VERB: | 1. To bend (the head or body) forward and down. 2. To debase; humble. | | NOUN: | 1. The act of stooping. 2. A forward bending of the head and upper back, especially when habitual. 3. An act of self-abasement or condescension. 4. A descent, as of a bird of prey. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English stoupen, from Old English st pian. | | SYNONYMS: | stoop1, condescend, deign These verbs mean to descend to a level considered inappropriate to one's dignity: stooped to contemptible methods to realize their ambitions; won't condescend to acknowledge his rival's greeting; didn't even deign to reply.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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