prop

UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈprɒp/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/prɑp/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(prop)

Inflections of 'prop' (v): (⇒ conjugate)
props
v 3rd person singular
propping
v pres p
propped
v past
propped
v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
prop1 /prɑp/USA pronunciation   v., propped, prop•ping, n. 
v. 
  1. to support, or prevent from falling, with or as if with a prop: [~ + up + object]He propped up the car with a jack.[~ + object + up]He tried propping it up.
  2. to rest (a thing) against a support:[~ + object]He propped the ladder against the wall.
  3. to support or sustain: [~ + up + object]The army propped up the dictator's regime.[~ + object + up]It can no longer prop him up.

n. [countable]
  1. Civil Engineeringsomething that props;
    support.

prop2 /prɑp/USA pronunciation   n. [countable]
  1. Show Businessa usually movable item used onstage or on a film set, esp. one handled by an actor or entertainer to enliven and enrich the performance.

prop3 /prɑp/USA pronunciation   n. [countable]
  1. Aeronauticsa propeller.

prop.,  an abbreviation of:
  1. properly.
  2. property.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
prop1  (prop),USA pronunciation v., propped, prop•ping, n. 
v.t. 
  1. to support, or prevent from falling, with or as if with a prop (often fol. by up):to prop an old fence; to prop up an unpopular government.
  2. to rest (a thing) against a support:He propped his cane against the wall.
  3. to support or sustain (often fol. by up).

n. 
  1. Civil Engineeringa stick, rod, pole, beam, or other rigid support.
  2. a person or thing serving as a support or stay:His father is his financial prop.
  • 1400–50; late Middle English proppe (noun, nominal); cognate with Middle Dutch proppe bottle stopper
    1. brace, buttress, bolster.
prop2  (prop),USA pronunciation n. [Theat.]
  1. Show Businessproperty (def. 8).
  • by shortening 1910–15
prop′less, adj. 

prop3  (prop),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. Aeronauticsa propeller.
  • by shortening 1910–15

prop., 
    1. properly.
    2. property.
    3. proposition.
    4. proprietary.
    5. proprietor.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
prop /prɒp/ vb (props, propping, propped)
when tr, often followed by up:
  1. (transitive) to support with a rigid object, such as a stick
  2. (transitive) usually also followed by against: to place or lean
  3. (transitive) to sustain or support
 n
  1. something that gives rigid support, such as a stick
  2. either of the forwards at either end of the front row of a scrum
Etymology: 15th Century: related to Middle Dutch proppe vine prop; compare Old High German pfropfo shoot, German Pfropfen stopper
prop /prɒp/ n
  1. short for property
prop /prɒp/ n
  1. an informal word for propeller
'prop' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
agitprop - appoggiatura - bolster - brace - buttress - clothes pole - clothes prop - firmament - fulcrum - loose head - pandanus - pile - pit - pole - property - propyl - rest - scotch - shore - spur - staple - stay - stem - tight head - underpin - adminicle - anastylosis - atlas - brace root - breakaway - bridge - cap - chlorpropamide - common property - community property - crutch - deadman - direc. prop. - finite intersection property - furcula - intellectual property - lean - leg - mainstay - muleta - personal property - projective property - propagable - propagandist - propagandize
Collocations: [stage, movie] props, a prop for the [movie, play, commercial], used as a prop in the [movie], more...

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