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anchor - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'anchor' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Anchor [ n.]
- A iron instrument which is attached to a ship by a cable (rope or chain), and which, being cast overboard, lays hold of the earth by a fluke or hook and thus retains the ship in a particular station.
- Any instrument or contrivance serving a purpose like that of a ship's anchor, as an arrangement of timber to hold a dam fast; a contrivance to hold the end of a bridge cable, or other similar part; a contrivance used by founders to hold the core of a mold in place.
- Fig.: That which gives stability or security; that on which we place dependence for safety.
- An emblem of hope.
- A metal tie holding adjoining parts of a building together.
- Carved work, somewhat resembling an anchor or arrowhead; -- a part of the ornaments of certain moldings. It is seen in the echinus, or egg-and-anchor (called also egg-and-dart, egg-and-tongue) ornament.
- One of the anchor-shaped spicules of certain sponges; also, one of the calcareous spinules of certain Holothurians, as in species of Synapta.
- An anchoret.
2 . Anchor [ v. i.]
- To cast anchor; to come to anchor; as, our ship (or the captain) anchored in the stream.
- To stop; to fix or rest.
3 . Anchor [ v. t.]
- To place at anchor; to secure by an anchor; as, to anchor a ship.
- To fix or fasten; to fix in a stable condition; as, to anchor the cables of a suspension bridge.

Meaning of 'anchor' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . anchor [ n]
Meaning (1):
- a central cohesive source of support and stability
Example in sentence:
  • faith is his anchor;
  • he is the linchpin of this firm;
  • the keystone of campaign reform was the ban on soft money
2 . anchor [ v]
Meaning (2):
- fix firmly and stably
Example in sentence:
  • anchor the lamppost in concrete
Meaning (3):
- secure a vessel with an anchor
Example in sentence:
  • We anchored at Baltimore

Nearby Words:

ancestor ancestorial ancestorially ancestral ancestress ancestry anchor-hold anchorable anchorage anchorate

See 'anchor' also in:

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