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Book Glossary

stall

Dictionary definition · stall

noun

  1. a compartment in a stable where a single animal is confined and fed
  2. small area set off by walls for special use
  3. a booth where articles are displayed for sale
  4. a malfunction in the flight of an aircraft in which there is a sudden loss of lift that results in a downward plunge"the plane went into a stall and I couldn't control it"
  5. seating in the forward part of the main level of a theater
  6. small individual study area in a library

verb

  1. postpone doing what one should be doing"He did not want to write the letter and procrastinated for days"
  2. come to a stop"The car stalled in the driveway"
  3. deliberately delay an event or action"she doesn't want to write the report, so she is stalling"
  4. put into, or keep in, a stall"Stall the horse"
  5. experience a stall in flight, of airplanes
  6. cause an airplane to go into a stall

Similar words

dilly-dallydillydallydrag one's feetdrag one's heelsprocrastinateshillyshallyboothcubiclekioskconk

Source: Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0).