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stirrup

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stirrup¹

  • /ˈstɪ.ɹəp/ UK
  • /ˈstʌ.ɹəp/ UK, obsolete
  • /ˈstɝ.əp/ US
  • /ˈstɪɹ.əp/ US

Rhymes with -ɪɹəp, -ɜːɹəp

Where it comes from

From Middle English stirop, stirope, from Old English stiġrāp (“stirrup”), a compound of stiġe ("ascent, descent, a going up or down"; related to stīġan (“to climb”)) and rāp (“rope”), equivalent to sty + rope.

Cognate with Dutch stegereep, stegelreep (“stirrup”), Old Saxon stigerēp (“stirrup”), Middle High German stereip, stegreif ("stirrup"; > German Stegreif (“improvisation”)), Icelandic stigreip (“stirrup”).

noun stirrups

  1. A ring or hoop suspended by a rope or strap from the saddle, for a horseman's foot while mounting or riding. With what different feelings did he now put foot in stirrup to the last time when he sprung to horse?
  2. broadly Any piece shaped like the stirrup of a saddle, used as a support, clamp, etc. Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke.[…]A silver snaffle on a heavy leather watch guard which connected the pockets of his corduroy waistcoat, together with a huge gold stirrup in his Ascot tie, sufficiently proclaimed his tastes.
  3. broadly A portable, flexible ladder-like device used in climbing.

    Similar: aider, étrier

  4. A stapes.
  5. A rope secured to a yard, with a thimble in its lower end for supporting a footrope. For quotations using this term, see Citations:stirrup.
  6. A bent rebar wrapped around the main rebars to reinforce against shear stress.

adjective

  1. not comparable Referring to women's pants/trousers: being of a form, commonly worn by women, that includes a strap beneath the arch of the foot.

Stirrup²

proper noun

  1. A surname.

Translations

Every language

noun footrest used by riders

Españolestribo, cubo, codillo, estribera, estafa, hondón
한국어등자 deungja
日本語鐙 abumi
中文馬鐙 /马镫 mǎdèng, 鐙子 /镫子 dèngzi
हिन्दीरकाब rakāb
Portuguêsestribo, estribeira
Françaisétrier
DeutschSteigbügel
Italianostaffa
Ελληνικάαναβολέας anavoléas
Românăscară
Русскийстре́мя strémja
Tiếng Việtbàn đạp
العربيةرِكَاب rikāb
עבריתאַרְכּוֹף arkóf, מִשְׁוֶרֶת mishveret

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MLA

"stirrup." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/stirrup. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

stirrup. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/stirrup

Chicago

"stirrup." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/stirrup.

BibTeX
@misc{stirrup_2026,
  title = {stirrup},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/stirrup},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}