Word of the Day: Anchor
anchor
an-chor / ăng-kər
noun
1. a heavy piece of metal on the end of a rope or chain that lowered into the water to keep a boat from drifting
A man without prudence is a ship without an anchor.
Welsh Proverb
2. something used to hold an object in securely in place
The fine cotton tufts which had just acted as wings, now acted as anchors on the soft mud.
From ”The True Story of a Cottonwood Tree” by D. Lange in “School Education”, Volume 18, Issues 7-8, 1899
3. a fitting used to hold parts of a building together
Anchors in masonry structures are commonly used to attach different structural and nonstructural masonry components.
“Anchoring in Masonry Structures – Types, Installation, Anchorage Length and Strength”, ‘The Constructor’, www.theconstructor.org/construction/anchoring-masonry-structures-types-installation-strength/16805, accessed May 28, 2021
4. a source of stability, security, or support
Cast all your cares on God; that anchor holds.
Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1809 – 1892
5. an anchorman; the main reporter who narrates or coordinates a broadcast with multiple reporters
Being an anchor is not just a matter of sitting in front of a camera and looking pretty.
David Brinkley, 1920 – 2003
6. in tug-of-war, the person at the end of the line
The best athletes of each team are usually the ones first in line – as well as the anchor, the last man or woman, who may wrap the rope around his or her body.
“Tug-of-War”, www.topendsports.com/sport/list/tug-of-war.htm, accessed May 27, 2021
7. the person on a sports team who participates in the final leg of a relay race or similar competition, generally considered the fastest or strongest member of the team
The Rocks’ anchor Jayden Bomelyn was handed the baton with a lead, and it was the good exchange between himself and Darius Tongo that helped Bomelyn hold off Moline anchor Boukary Mbengue.
Kyle Hartwick, “Geneseo relay team turns mistake into victory”, ‘Quad-City Times’, May 8, 2021
8. a store that attracts customers to the shopping complex where it is located
Indeed, malls are losing, at a steady clip, their department store anchors.
“Anchors, away: How department stores are ditching malls”, ‘Retail Dive’, Daphne Howland, www.retaildive.com/news/anchors-away-how-department-stores-are-ditching-malls/588769. November 12, 2020
verb
1. to secure a vessel
The boat is safer anchored at the port; but that’s not the aim of boats.
Paulo Coelho, 1947 –
2. to secure or fasten firmly, to fix in place
When I first started wearing wigs, I didn’t know you had to anchor them down with bobby pins.
Sherri Shepherd, 1967 –
3. to act as an anchorman, narrating or coordinating a broadcast with multiple reporters
When I first anchored in 1970, I had never seen a woman anchor a news show.
Jessica Savitch, 1947 – 1983
