anchor
/ˈæŋ.kəː/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: 4.02 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An iron device so shaped as to grip the bottom and hold a vessel at her berth by the chain or rope attached.
noun
The combined anchoring gear (anchor, rode, bill/peak and fittings such as bitts, cat, and windlass.)
noun
Any instrument serving a purpose like that of a ship's anchor, such as an arrangement of timber to hold a dam fast; a device to hold the end of a bridge cable etc.; or a device used in metalworking to hold the core of a mould in place.
noun
A line of code in a program which acts as a reference point for further code to be added immediately before or after, usually via copy and paste.
noun
An anchorman or anchorwoman.
Example Sentences
- "Men that I knew around Wapatomac didn't wear high, shiny plug hats, nor yeller spring overcoats, nor carry canes with ivory heads as big as a catboat's anchor, as you might say."
- "Condoleezza Rice pops up on Fox to be told by the anchor: “When you invade a sovereign nation, that is a war crime.”"
- "Supermarkets have also had to adjust. Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda have put a much greater emphasis on developing smaller high street stores or becoming anchors for mixed-used regeneration schemes […]"
- "However, mall developers offer huge discounts to department stores because these anchors create traffic […]"
- "which hope we have as an anchor of the soul"
- "I saw Tim look back through the rear window of the cab and prayed he wouldn't do the first thing that came into his mind and step on the anchors."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂enk-der.? Pre-Greekbor.? Ancient Greek ᾰ̓́γκῡρᾰ (ắnkūră)bor.? Latin ancorabor. Proto-Germanic *ankurô Proto-West Germanic *ankurō Old English ancor Middle English anker English anchor From Middle English anker, from Old English ancor, ancra, from Latin ancora, from (or cognate with) Ancient Greek ἄγκυρα (ánkura). The modern form is a sixteenth-century modification after the Medieval Latin spelling anchora. Doublet of ancora, anker, angora, and Ankara.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈæŋ.kəː/
- British English: /ˈæŋ.kəː/