C4- 
\ 
droop * : y 
droop (drop), f. [< Ml). <ln>i<i><n, rarely drnprn, 
drupen, droop, csp. from sorrow, < Icel. driipa, 
droop, esp. from sorrow, a secondary verb, < 
drjfipaxaAS.'dreopan, ilron: see <//</// and ilrip.'} 
1. intrants. I. To sink or lianj; down; bend or 
hung downward, as from weakness or exhaus- 
tion. 
\VY1 row-ill! hi'divsae his tilkl-1 yulliailly, 
Ili8 arwos drowpedr nought w-ith fetheres lowe. 
Chaut-ff, (Jt-ii. I'l-ol. to C. T., 1. 107. 
The evening comes, anil every little tlow.-r 
Dl-nnfH now, as Well as 1. 
I!' a u. and Ft., Coxcomb, ill. 3. 
llanipilrii. with his ln.nl iti-i>t>[ifni/, ami his hands lean- 
ing on his horse's neck, inovetl feebly out of the battle. 
ilacauiay, Nugent* Hampden. 
Near the lake where drooped the willow, 
Long time ago. 'i. /'. Morris. 
2. To languish from grief or other cause ; fall 
into a state of physical weakness. 
Conceiving the dishonour of his mother, 
He straight declin'd, druoii'd, took it deeply. 
Skak., W. T., il. 3. 
After this King Loir, more and more drooping with 
Years, became an easy prey to his Daughters and thir Hus- 
bands. Milton, Hist. Eng., 1. 
We had not been-at Sea long before our Men began to 
tlriK'ii, in a sort of a Distemper that stole insensibly on 
them. Dampier, Voyages, I. 624. 
One day she droojted, and the next she died ; nor was 
there the distance of many hours between her being very 
easy in this world, and very happy in another. 
Bp. Atterbury, Sermons, I. vi. 
3. To fail or sink ; flag; decline; be dispirited: 
as, the courage droops ; the spirits droop. 
Myche fere had that fre, & full was of thoght, 
All droupoiul in drede and ill dol lengyt 
Destruction of Troy (E. E. T. S.), 1. 6303. 
But wherefore do you droop ? why look so sad ? 
Be great in act, as you have been in thought. 
Skak., K. John, T. 1. 
Why droops my lord, my love, my life, my Cresar ? 
How ill this dulness doth comport with greatness ! 
Fletcher (and aiiothert), Prophetess, v. 1. 
4. To tend gradually downward or toward a 
close. [Poetical.] 
Then day droopt ; the chapel bells 
Call'd us : we left the walks. 
Tennyson, Princess, ii. 
5. To drip ; be wet with water. [Prov. Eng.] 
I was drooping wet to my very skinne. 
Coryat, Crudities, I. 67. 
"They've had no rain at all down here," said he. 
"Then," said she, demurely regarding her drooping 
skirts, "they'll think I must have fallen into the river." 
W. Black, Harper's Mag., LXXVI. 391. 
II. trans. To let sink or hang down: as, to 
droop the head. 
The lilylike Melissa droop'd her brows. 
Tennyson, Princess, iv. 
Great, sulky gray cranes dronp their motionless heads 
over the still, salt pools along the shore. 
R. T. Coote, Somebody's Neighbors, p. 24. 
droop (drop), >i. [(droop, r.] The act of droop- 
ing, or of bending or hanging down; a drooping 
position or state. 
With his little insinuating Jury droop. 
Dickens, Little Don-it, i. 21. 
drooper (dro'per), . One who or that which 
droops. 
If ho (tile historian) be pleasant, he is noted for n ifstt-r ; 
if he be graue, he is reckoned for a drooper. 
Stanihurst, To Sir H. Sidney, in Holinshed. 
droopingly (dro'ping-li), adv. In a drooping 
manner ; languishingly. 
They [duties] are not accompanied with such sprlghtli- 
ness of affections, and overflowings of joy, as they wen- 
wont, but are performed droopinyly and heavily. 
Sharpe, Works, III. iii. 
drop (drop), v. ; pret. and pp. dropped, ppr. 
dropping. [Early mod. E. also droppe; < ME. 
droppen, < AS. dri>i>pnn, also dropian and etrop- 
petian, ili-o/>/i< I<tn = I). <lrt>/>pen = G. Iropfcn = 
S\v. droppa, drop; secondary forms of the orig. 
strong verb, A.S.*dre6pan (pret. "drcdp, pl.*rfr- 
/>, pp. "dropen; occurring, if at all, only in 
doubtful passages), ME. drepen (= (IS. ilrinpini 
= OFries. driapa I), druipi-n =()IKi. trinfaii, 
MHG. G. triefcn = Icel. drjfipa = Norw. drjupa), 
drop, whence also ult. drop, n., drip, r., dribble*, 
etc., and (through Icel.) droop, r.] I. intmnx. 
1. To fall in small portions or globules, as a 
liquid. 
The quality of mercy is not strain'd ; 
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven 
Upon the place brnrath. Shak., M. of V., iv. 1. 
2. To let drops fall ; drip ; discharge in drops. 
The heavens also drupird :it the presence of God. 
Ps. Ixviii. S. 
Mine eyes m:iy i/ro/j for thee, but thine own heart will 
ache for itself. B. Jonson, Poetaster, i. 1. 
112 
It was a loathsome herd, . . . half bestial, half human, 
dropping with wine, bloated with gluttony, ami reeling in 
obscene dances. Macaulay, Milton. 
3. To fall; descend; sink to a lower position 
or level. 
From morn 
To noon he fell, . . . and with the setting sun 
Dropp'd from the zenith like a falling star. 
Millim, P. L.,i. 745. 
The eurtafn drops on the drama of Indian history about 
the year 6.iO, or a little later. 
./. r'lTffusson, Hist. Indian Arch., p. 209. 
4. Specifically, to lie down, as a dog. 5. To 
die, especially to die suddenly; fall dead, as in 
battle. 
It was your presurmlse, 
That in the dole of blows your son might drop. 
N/i.it., > Hen. IV., i. 1. 
They see Indeed many drop, but then they see many 
more alive. Steele, Spectator, No. 152. 
6. To come to an end; be allowed to cease; 
be neglected and come to nothing. 
I heard of threats, occasioned by my verses; I sent to 
acquaint them where I was to be found, and so It dropped. 
Pope. 
7f. To fall short of a mark. [Rare.] 
Often it drops or overshoots. Cn!U.-r. 
8. To fall lower in state or condition ; sink ; 
be depressed ; come into a state of collapse or 
quiescence. 
Down dropt the breeze, the sails dropt down. 
Coleridge, Ancient Mariner, ii. 
9. Xaut., to have a certain drop, or depth from 
top to bottom : said of a sail. 
Her main top-sail drops seventeen yards. Uar. Did. 
A dropping fire (milit.), a continuous irregular discharge 
of small arms. To drop astern (naut.), to pass or move 
toward tin- stern ; move back ; let another vessel pass 
ahead, either by slackening the speed of the vessel that is 
passed or because of the superior speed of the vessel pass- 
ing. To drop away or off, to depart; disappear; be 
lost sight of : as, all my friends dropped ateay from me ; 
the guests dropped o/ one by one. 
If the war continued much longer, America would most 
certainly drop away, and France, and perhaps Spain, l>e- 
conie bankrupt. Lecky, Eng. In 18th Cent., xv. 
To drop down a stream, a coast, etc., to sail, row, or 
move down a river or toward the sea, downward along a 
coast, etc. To drop In, to happen in ; come in as if cas- 
ually, or without previous agreement as to time, as for a 
call. 
Captain Knight with as many Men as he could incou- 
rage to march, came in al>out 6, but he left many Men tired 
on the Road ; these, as is usual, came dropping in one or 
two at a time, as they were able. 
Dampier, Voyages, I. 219. 
Others of the household soon dropped in, and clustered 
round the hoard. Barham, Ingoldsby Legends, I. 33. 
To drop out, to withdraw or disappear from one's (or its) 
place : as, he dropped out of the ranks. To drop to shot, 
to drop or charge at the discharge of the gun : said of a 
fleld-dog. To drop to wing, to dropor charge when the 
bird flushes : said of a field-dog. 
II. trans. 1. To pour or let fall in small por- 
tions, globules, or drops, as a liquid: as, to 
drop a medicine. 
His heavens shall drop down dew. Dent, xxxiii. 28. 
Their eyes are like rocks, which still drop water. 
Burton, Anat. of MeL, p. 492. 
2. To sprinkle with or as if with drops ; varie- 
gate, as if by sprinkling with drops ; bedrop : 
as, a coat dropped with gold. 
This rumoured the day following about the City, num- 
bers of people flockt thither ; who found the roome all to 
l>e dropt with torches in confirmation of this relation. 
Sandys, Travailes, p. 151. 
3. To let fall; allow to sink to a lower position; 
lower : as, to drop a stone ; to drop the muz- 
zle of a gun. 
I saw him with that lily cropp'd 
Impatient swim to meet 
My quick approach, and soon he dropp'd 
The treasure at my feet 
Cotrper, Dog and Water-lily. 
Hence 4. To let fall from the womb; give 
birth to : said of ewes, etc. : as, to drop a lamb. 
The history of a new cok that my lord's mare Thetis had 
dropped last week. //. Kingsley, Geoffry Hamlyn, xvii. 
5. To cause to fall; hence, to kill, especially 
with a firearm. [Colloq.] 
A young grouse at this season [October] offers an easy 
shot, and he was dropped without difficulty. 
T. Roo*evclt, Hunting Trips, p. 79. 
He had the luck 
To .//M;> at fair-play range a [cn-tined buck. 
l.oicell, Fitz Adam's Story. 
6. To let go; dismiss; lay aside; break off 
from; omit: as, to drop an affair or a contro- 
versy; to drop an acquaintance; to drop a let- 
ter from a word. 
He is now under prosecution ; hut they think it will be 
dropped, out of pity. Swtft, Journal to Stella, xlix. 
drop 
I 'pun my credit, sir, were I In your place, and found my 
father such very bad company, I should certainly drop his 
acquaintance. >/..-, ,./<m, The Rivals, II. 1. 
It (the cave| him also a semicircular open -work mould- 
ing, like basket-work, whirh . . . is evidently no llliMiif. .1 
for stone-work that it is no wonder it was dromu-'l 
early. J. Ferguatm, Hist. Indian Arch., p. 110. 
The memlier, whether church or minister, can he trir.l, 
expelled. *//"/'/*-'/, or transferred to a co-ordinatt* iNMiy, 
as facts may warrant. RMiotheca Sacra, Xl.III. 418. 
7. To utter as if casually : as, to drop a word in 
favor of a friend. 
They [the Arabs] had dropt some expressions as If they 
would assault the boat by night if I staid, which, with- 
out doubt, they said that they might make mo go away. 
Pococke, Description of the East, I. ii. 105. 
To my great surprise, not a syllable was dropped on f 1m 
subject. Lamb, Imperfect Sympathies. 
8. To write and send (a note) in an offhand 
manner: as ; drop me a line. 9. To set down 
from a carriage. 
When Lord Howe came over from Twickenham to see 
him (the King), he said the Queen was going out driving, 
and should "drop him " at his own house. 
tireritte. Memoirs, July 18, 1880. 
To drop a courtesy, to courtesy. 
The girls, with an attempt at simultaneonsness. dropped 
"curcheys " of respect The Century, XXXVI. 86. 
To drop a line, (a) To fish with a line, i M To write a 
letter or note. To drop anchor, to anchor. To drop 
the curtain. See curtain. To drop or weep mill- 
stones. See in illstone. 
drop (drop), . [Early mod. E. also droppe; < 
ME. drope, < AS. dropa (= OS. dropo = D. drop 
= MLG. drope, drape, LG. druppcn, drapen = 
OHG. tropfo, troffo, MHG. tropfe, G. tropfen 
= Icel. dropi = 8w. droppe = Dan. draabe), 
a drop, < AS., etc., "dreopan, pp. "dropen, 
drop: see drop, r.] 1. A mass of water or 
other liquid so small that the surface-tension 
brings it into a spherical shape more or less 
modified by gravity, adhesion, etc. ; a globule: 
as, a drop of blood ; a drop of laudanum. 
One or two drops of water perce not the flint stone, but 
many and often droppings doo. 
Puttenhatii, Arte of Eng. Poesie, p. 164. 
O, now you weep ; and, I perceive, you feel 
The dint of pity ; these are gracious drops. 
Skak., J. C., Ill 2. 
Madam, this grief 
You add unto me is no more than drops 
To seas, for which tiiey are not seen to swell. 
Beau, ant Fl., Philaster, ill. 2. 
2. Something that resembles such a drop of 
liquid, as a pendent diamond ornament, an ear- 
ring, or a glass pendant of a chandelier: spe- 
cifically applied to varieties of sugar-plums and 
to medicated candies prepared in asimilarfonn: 
as, lemon-dr(>ps ; cough-drop*. 
The flutt'ring fan lie Zephyretta's care ; 
The drops to thee, Brillante, we consign ; 
And, Momentilla, let the watch be thine. 
Pope, R. of the L., ii. 113. 
Specifically, in her., the representation of a drop of li- 
quid, usually globular tit low and tapering to a point 
above. Drops of different colors are considered as tear- 
drops, drops of blood, etc., and are blazoned accordingly. 
See gutU. 
3. Any small quantity of liquid: as, he had 
not drunk a drop. 
Water, water everywhere, 
Nor any drop to drink. 
Coteridf/e, Ancient Mariner, i. 
Hence 4. A minute quantity of anything: as, 
he has not a drop of honor, or of magnanimity. 
Bnt If there be 
Yet left in heaven as small a drop of pity 
As a wren's eye, fear'd gods, a part of it ! 
Shak., Cymbellne, Iv. 2. 
5. pi. Any liquid medicine the dose of which 
consists of a certain number of drops. 
Lydia. Give me the sal volatile. 
l.ui-ii. Is it in a blue cover, ma'am? 
Lydia. My smelling-bottle, you simpleton ! 
Lucy. O, the drops ! here, ma'am. 
Sheridan, The Rivals, L 2. 
6. A piece of gut used by anglers on casting- 
lines. A fly-hook is attached to the loose end of the 
drop, the other end being fastened to the easting-line. 
7. A Scotch unit of weight, the sixteenth part 
of an ounce, nearly equal to 30 grains English 
troy weight. 8. The act of dropping; drip. 
[Rare.] 
Can my slow drop of tears, or this dark shade 
About my brows, enough descril>e her loss ? 
B. Jonson, Sad Shepherd, i. 2. 
9. In merit., a contrivance arranged so as to 
drop, fall, or hang from a higher position, or 
to lower objects. Specifically (a) A trap-door in 
tin- scaffold of a usual form of gallows, upon which the 
criminal alnnit to In- executed is placed with the halter 
about his neck, and which is suddenly dropped or swung 
open on its hinges, letting him fall, (b) A contrivance 
for lowering heavy weights, as bale-goods, to a ship's 
