ropes

R1O1P3E1S1
US/ɹoʊps/UK/ɹəʊps/

noun

Basic skills of a job.

“show the ropes, learn the ropes”

Less commonScrabble 7
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Meanings

ropes1

noun
  1. pluralplural of rope
  2. in pluralBasic skills of a job.

    show the ropes, learn the ropes

verb
  1. indicativepresentsingularthird personthird-person singular simple present indicative of rope

Ropes2

proper noun
  1. A surname.

Origin

In the sense of skills, a now figurative use that originally referred to literal ropes. The phrase “he knows the ropes” written on a seaman’s discharge meant that he was inexperienced and only familiar with a ship’s principal ropes.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with ropes

lopes
All rhymes →

Anagrams

proseposersporesoperSperopreso
Cite this entry
APA

ropes. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ropes

MLA

“ropes.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ropes. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ropes,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ropes.

Source: ropes on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.