Meaning & use
strop
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Meanings
nouncountableBritishinformal
A sulky, bad-tempered mood, often shown by complaining or storming off, usually over something small.
Grammar: Usually singular, with a: in a strop, throw a strop.
Patterns
- in a strop
- throw a strop
- get into a strop
She went into a strop when she was told she could not borrow the car.
He walked out in a strop after losing the argument.
The toddler threw a strop in the supermarket.
verbtransitivespecialist
To sharpen a razor by rubbing it back and forth along a strip of leather.
Grammar: Takes an object: strop a razor.
Patterns
- strop a razor
The barber stropped the razor before shaving his client.
He stropped his blade on a leather belt.
Grandfather always stropped his razor in the morning.
nouncountablespecialistold-fashioned
A strip of leather or similar material used for sharpening a razor blade.
Grammar: Specialist and old-fashioned; a strop hangs near a barber's chair.
Patterns
- a strop for something
The leather strop hung from a hook beside the mirror.
He ran the blade along the strop twelve times.
An old strop was in the barber's shop window.
Word forms
| plural | strops |
|---|---|
| third person singular | strops |
| past tense | stropped |
| past participle | stropped |
| -ing form | stropping |
Common combinations
- in a strop
- He's been in a strop all morning because the match was cancelled.
- throw a strop
- Don't throw a strop just because you lost.
- get into a strop
- She gets into a strop whenever she cannot find her keys.
- have a strop
- He had a strop when I asked him to tidy up.
- strop a razor
- The barber stropped a razor in front of the customer.
- leather strop
- A leather strop keeps the blade sharp.
Synonyms and how they differ
- tantrum
- Tantrum is a loud, angry outburst, usually from a child, while a strop is a sulky, often quieter bad mood.
- huff
- Huff is a short fit of annoyance, similar to strop but a little less sulky, as in go off in a huff.
- sulk
- A sulk is silent, resentful moodiness, while a strop can include noise and storming about.
- paddy
- Paddy is a British informal word for a fit of temper, but it can offend some people, so strop is the safer choice.
Word family
- stroppy adjective
- British informal for bad-tempered and difficult
- stroppily adverb
- in a bad-tempered, difficult way
- stroppiness noun
- the state of being bad-tempered and awkward
Commonly confused: strop or strap?
strop vs strap
A strap is a strip of cloth or leather used to hold or carry something. Strop sounds similar but means a bad mood or a sharpening strip.
Practice
My brother went into a ___ because we would not let him pick the film.
Choose one answer.
In British English, to go into a strop means to become sulky and bad-tempered. A strap, strip or stroke does not fit this idiom.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “strop”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.