loophole
/ˈluphoʊl/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.24 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A slit in a castle wall; today, any similar window for shooting a ranged weapon or letting in light.
noun
A method of escape, especially an ambiguity or exception in a rule or law that can be exploited in order to avoid its effect.
Example Sentences
- "[…] and having a fair loophole, as it were, from a broken hole in the tree, he took a sure aim, without being seen, waiting till they were within about thirty yards of the tree, so that he could not miss."
- "There was a loophole in this wall, to let the light in, just at the height of a person's head, who was sitting near the chimney."
- "The sun had shifted round, and the myriad windows of the Ministry of Truth, with the light no longer shining on them, looked grim as the loopholes of a fortress."
- "Coupling the poor girl's intelligence with my previous knowledge, and the result of our good friend's inquiries on the spot, I left him no loophole of escape, and laid bare the whole villany which by these lights became plain as day."
- "You have a contract that says you will work until Island Towers is finalized, which I interpret as completion of construction, or I can stop you working elsewhere. And there's no loopholes, because you drafted it and you're the best."
- "Behind the scenes, the system had quietly punched a neat loophole into the ballyhooed reform."
Etymology
From Middle English loupe (“opening in a wall”) + hole, from a Germanic source. By surface analysis, loop + hole. Compare Medieval Latin loupa, lobia and Middle Dutch lupen (“to watch”).
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈluphoʊl/
- British English: /ˈluːphəʊl/