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   Stall

   /stôl/

   

   noun

   • 1. a stand, booth, or compartment for the sale of goods in a market or large covered area: "fruit and vegetable stalls" Similar standtablecounterboothkioskcompartment
   • 2. an individual compartment for an animal in a stable or barn, enclosed on three sides. Similar pencoopstycorralenclosurecompartmentcubicle
   • ▪ a stable.
   • ▪ a marked-out parking space for a vehicle: North American "a parking stall"
   • ▪ a compartment for one person in a shower room, restroom, or similar facility.
   • 3. a fixed seat in the choir or chancel of a church, more or less enclosed at the back and sides and often canopied, typically reserved for a particular member of the clergy.
   • 4. the seats on the ground floor in a theater: British "a stalls seat" Similar orchestraparterre
   • 5. an instance of an engine, vehicle, aircraft, or boat stalling: "speed must be maintained to avoid a stall and loss of control"

   verb

   • 1. (of a motor vehicle or its engine) stop running, typically because of an overload on the engine: "her car stalled at the crossroads"
   • ▪ (of an aircraft or its pilot) reach a condition where the speed is too low to allow effective operation of the controls.
   • ▪ have insufficient wind power in the sails to give controlled motion.
   • ▪ cause (an engine, vehicle, aircraft, or boat) to stall.
   • 2. stop or cause to stop making progress: "his career had stalled, hers taken off" Similar obstructimpedeinterfere withhinderhamperblockinterrupthold uphold backstand in the way offrustratethwartbalkinhibithamstringsabotageencumberrestrainslowslow downretarddelaystonewallforestallarrestcheckstophaltstayderailrestrictlimitcurbput a brake onbridlefettershackleinformal:stymieborkrare:trammel
   • ▪ speak or act in a deliberately vague way in order to gain more time to deal with a question or issue; prevaricate: "she was stalling for time" Similar use delaying tacticsplay for timetemporizegain timehang backhang firehold backprocrastinatehedgebeat around the bushdrag one's feetdelayfilibusterstonewallinformal:kick the can down the road
   • ▪ delay or divert (someone) by stalling: "stall him until I've had time to take a look" Similar delaydivertdistracthold offstave offfend offkeep offward offkeep at baykeep at arm's length
   • 3. put or keep (an animal) in a stall, especially in order to fatten it: "the horses were stalled at Upper Bolney Farm"

   Word Origin Old Englishsteall ‘stable or cattle shed’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch stal, also to stand. Early senses of the verb included ‘reside, dwell’ and ‘bring to a halt’.

   Scrabble Points: 5

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   • L

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