prop

plural props

1. An object placed against or under another, to support it; anything that supports.

   They stuck a block of wood under it as a prop.

   Synonyms: shore

2. ball gamesThe player on either side of the hooker in a scrum.
3. Any of the seashells in the game of props.

present singular third person props · participle present propping · participle past propped · past propped

1. figurativelysometimestransitiveTo support or shore up something.

   Try using a phone book to prop up the table where the foot is missing.

2. intransitiveTo play rugby in the prop position.
3. transitiveusuallyTo position the feet of (a person) while sitting, lying down, or reclining so that the knees are elevated at a higher level.
4. AustraliaNew ZealandintransitiveTo stop suddenly or unexpectedly; derived from the situation where a horse might suddenly halt of its own accord, digging its front hooves into the ground to brace itself from forward movement, potentially unseating its rider.
5. UKobsoleteslangtransitiveTo knock (a person) down.

   We used to go out into the roads (highway robbery) between races, and if we met an ‘old bloke’ (man) we ‘propped him’ (knocked him down), and robbed him.

   1851, Henry Mayhew, London Labour and the London Poor, published 1861

plural props

1. broadcastingAn item placed on a stage or set to create a scene or scenario in which actors perform.

   They used the trophy as a prop in the movie.

   1. colloquialbroadcastingA fake or fabricated version of an object, whether or not it is used for a scene.

      We threw a prop squirrel off of a tower.

2. An item placed within an advertisement in order to suggest a style of living etc.

   You can use props in a literal way to enhance the story, such as shooting a woodworker amidst woodworking tools.

   2006, Michael Grecco, Lighting and the Dramatic Portrait, Amphoto Books, →ISBN, page 109

plural props

1. The propeller of an aircraft or boat.

present singular third person props · participle present propping · participle past propped · past propped

1. To manually start the engine of a propeller-driven aircraft with no electric starter by pulling vigorously on one of the propeller blades using the hands, so that the propeller can catch ignition.

plural props

1. USgovernmentA proposition, especially on an election-day ballot.

   “Watch how totally dishonest the California Prop vote is!” Trump fumed on Truth Social over the weekend.

   2025 October 27, Russell Berman, quoting Donald Trump, “‘California Is Allowed to Hit Back’”, in The Atlantic, archived from the original on 04 Nov 2025

   1 more example

   John Aubrey Douglass, a senior research fellow at the Center for Studies in Higher Education at Berkeley, said that while he was not an insider on admissions practices, “my sense is that admissions is highly regulated and careful to stay clear of Prop 209 restrictions, and the Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action.”

   2025 February 3, Anemona Hartocollis, “The University of California Increased Diversity. Now It’s Being Sued.”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 04 Feb 2025

plural props

1. abbreviationclippingaerospaceClipping of propellant (“rocket fuel”).

plural props

1. abbreviationclippinginformalgamblingClipping of proposition player.

plural props

1. InternetA part of a plant reared for its multiplication.

1. slanguncountablebodybuildingTestosterone propionate.

   Synonyms: test prop

plural props

1. obsoleteslangA blow; the act of striking someone.

   There was some good counter hits, and then Foster received a prop on the nose which drew the claret.

   1899, Eden Phillpotts, The Human Boy Again

2. obsoletethieves' cantA scarf pin.

1. abbreviationuncountablechemistryAbbreviation of propylthiouracil.