English Explanatory Dictionary

anchor

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A tool used to moor a vessel to the bottom of a sea or river to resist movement.
  2. An iron device so shaped as to grip the bottom and hold a vessel at her berth by the chain or rope attached.
  3. The combined anchoring gear (anchor, rode, bill/peak and fittings such as bitts, cat, and windlass.)
  4. Representation of the nautical tool, used as a heraldic charge.
  5. Any instrument serving a purpose like that of a ship's anchor, such as an arrangement of timber to hold a dam fast; a device to hold the end of a bridge cable etc.; or a device used in metalworking to hold the core of a mould in place.
  6. A marked point in a document that can be the target of a hyperlink.
  7. A line of code in a program which acts as a reference point for further code to be added immediately before or after, usually via copy and paste.
  8. An anchorman or anchorwoman.
  9. The final runner in a relay race.
  10. A point that is touched by the draw hand or string when the bow is fully drawn and ready to shoot.
  11. A superstore or other facility that serves as a focus to bring customers into an area.
  12. That which gives stability or security.
verb
  1. To connect an object, especially a ship or a boat, to a fixed point.
  2. To cast anchor; to come to anchor.
  3. To stop; to fix or rest.
  4. To provide emotional stability for a person in distress.
  5. To perform as an anchorman or anchorwoman.
  6. To be stuck; to be unable to move away from a position.
noun
  1. An anchorite or anchoress.
noun
  1. Alternative form of anker.
name
  1. A male given name.

Pronunciation

/ˈæŋ.kəː/ [ˈæŋ.kəː] /ˈæŋ.kɚ/ [ˈæŋ.kɚ] ~ [ˈæŋ.kɹ̩] /ˈeɪ̯ŋ.kɚ/ [ˈeɪ̯ŋ.kɚ] ~ [ˈeɪ̯ŋ.kɹ̩] /ˈɛ̃ŋ.kɚ/ [ˈɛ̃ŋ.kɚ] ~ [ˈɛ̃ŋ.kɹ̩] en-us-anchor.ogg

Word forms

anchor anchors anchour anchoring anchored

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂enk-der.? Ancient Greek ᾰ̓́γκῡρᾰ (ắnkūră)bor.? Latin ancorabor. Proto-Germanic *ankurô Proto-West Germanic *ankurō Old English ancor Middle English anker English anchor From Middle English anker, from Old English ancor, ancra, from Latin ancora, from (or cognate with) Ancient Greek ἄγκυρα (ánkura). The modern form is a sixteenth-century modification after the Medieval Latin spelling anchora. Doublet of ancora, anker, angora, and Ankara.

Synonyms

anchor tenant hold affix fix drop anchor ride cease support host present bog down embog enmire

Derived words

anchorable anchorage anchor baby anchor ball anchor bend anchor buoy anchoress anchor hitch anchorhold anchor-hoy anchor ice anchorless anchor light anchorlike anchor line anchorman anchor man anchor nut anchorperson anchor point anchor pylon anchor ring anchor's aweigh anchor seine anchor shot anchorsmith anchor space anchor store anchor tenant anchor worm at anchor Blue Anchor boat anchor bower anchor bring one's arse to an anchor bring one's arse to anchor bring one's ass to an anchor bring one's ass to anchor coanchor come to anchor crown and anchor drift anchor drogue anchor drop anchor foul anchor fouled anchor ice anchor lay an anchor to the windward midfield anchor mushroom anchor news anchor rail anchor rond anchor rond-anchor screw anchor sea anchor sheet anchor swallow the anchor swing at anchor trust anchor
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