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stall²

(stôl)

A ruse or tactic used to mislead or delay.

v. stalled, stall·ing, stalls

v.tr.

To employ delaying tactics against: stall off creditors.

v.intr.

To employ delaying tactics: stalling for time.

[Alteration (influenced by STALL¹) of obsolete stale, pickpocket's accomplice, from Middle English, decoy, from Anglo-Norman estale, of Germanic origin; possibly akin to Old English stǣl, stathol, place, position; see STADDLE.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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