Message-ID: <21096732.1075846821055.JavaMail.evans@thyme>
Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2000 13:31:00 -0700 (PDT)
From: wsmith@wordsmith.org
To: linguaphile@wordsmith.org
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--strop
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strop (strop) noun

   1. A strap, especially a short rope whose ends are spliced together to
      make a ring.

   2. A flexible strip of leather or canvas used for sharpening a razor.

verb tr.

   To sharpen (a razor) on a strop.

[Middle English strope, band of leather, probably from Old English, thong
for an oar, from Latin stroppus, twisted cord, from Greek strophos, from
strephein, to turn..]

   "He absently sharpened his razor along a leather strop for several
   moments, gazing into the middle distance."
   Mark Leyner, I dream of Liddy, Elle, Oct 1999.

This week's theme: semordnilaps, or words that spell other words when 
reversed.

.............................................................................
Everyone is born with genius, but most people only keep it a few minutes.
-Edgard Varese, composer (1885-1965)

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Pronunciation:
http://wordsmith.org/words/strop.wav
http://wordsmith.org/words/strop.ram