stilt
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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Etymology
From Middle English stilte, stulte, from Old English *stilte, *stylte, from Proto-Germanic *stiltijǭ, *staltijǭ, *stultijǭ (“stilt”), from Proto-Germanic *stelt- (“to be stiff”). Akin to Danish stylte, Dutch stelt, German Stelze.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /stɪlt/
Audio (Southern England): (file) - Rhymes: -ɪlt
Noun
stilt (plural stilts)
- Either of two poles with footrests that allow someone to stand or walk above the ground; used mostly by entertainers.
- A tall pillar or post used to support some structure; often above water.
- Coordinate terms: pile, pier, staddle stone
- Any of various wading birds of the genera Himantopus and Cladorhynchus, related to the avocet, that have extremely long legs and long thin bills.
- A crutch.
- The handle of a plough.
- 1829 December, [Walter Scott], “Introduction”, in Rob Roy (Waverley Novels; VII), Edinburgh: […] Cadell & Company; London: Simpkin & Marshall, →OCLC, pages lxxxvii–lxxxviii:
- He […] shot MacLaren when between the stilts of his plough, […]
Derived terms
Translations
walking pole
|
pillar
|
bird
|
crutch — see crutch
handle of a plough
|
Verb
stilt (third-person singular simple present stilts, present participle stilting, simple past and past participle stilted)
- to raise on stilts, or as if on stilts
- to apply unnecessary pomp or formality
Further reading
Anagrams
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Alternative forms
- stillet (Etymology 3)
Verb
stilt
- past participle of stille
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Etymology 1
Verb
stilt
- past participle of stilla
Etymology 2
Adjective
stilt
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