1
a
: a compartment for a domestic animal in a stable or barn
b
: a space marked off for parking a motor vehicle
2
a
: a seat in the chancel of a church with back and sides wholly or partly enclosed
b
: a church pew
c
chiefly British
: a front orchestra seat in a theater
—usually used in plural
3
: a booth, stand, or counter at which articles are displayed for sale
4
: a protective sheath for a finger or toe
5
: a small compartment
a shower stall
especially
: one with a toilet or urinal
stalled; stalling; stalls
1
: to put into or keep in a stall
2
obsolete
: install sense 2
1
: to come to a standstill (as from mired wheels or engine failure)
2
: to experience a stall in flying
: the condition of an airfoil or aircraft in which excessive angle of attack causes disruption of airflow with attendant loss of lift
: a ruse to deceive or delay
stalled; stalling; stalls
: to play for time : delay
: to hold off, divert, or delay by evasion or deception
Synonyms
Examples of stall in a Sentence
Verb (1)
endless complaints stalled the process of selecting the winning design for the memorial
the engine stalls sometimes when it's very cold outside
Recent Examples on the Web
Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 20 Nov. 2024
Political pushback has stalled negotiations in Watsonville, despite a California appellate court ruling two years ago that ordered the city to fluoridate.
—Lisa M. Krieger, The Mercury News, 16 Nov. 2024
Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 20 Nov. 2024
From a business standpoint, holding women back and diminishing their accomplishments stalls growth and harms a nonprofit's overall effectiveness.
—Tara Fitzpatrick-Navarro, Forbes, 6 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for stall 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Verb
The field of robotics has stalled compared to software and AI in recent years mainly due to a disparity in training data.
—Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 20 Nov. 2024
Political pushback has stalled negotiations in Watsonville, despite a California appellate court ruling two years ago that ordered the city to fluoridate.
—Lisa M. Krieger, The Mercury News, 16 Nov. 2024
Noun
Peruse the atmospheric stalls for handcrafted decorations, wool socks, and plenty of Belgian treats and mulled wine, followed by a spin around the ice rink.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 20 Nov. 2024
From a business standpoint, holding women back and diminishing their accomplishments stalls growth and harms a nonprofit's overall effectiveness.
—Tara Fitzpatrick-Navarro, Forbes, 6 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for stall
Dictionary Entries Near stall
Cite this Entry
“Stall.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stall. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
stall
1 of 5 noun1
: a compartment for a domestic animal in a stable or barn
2
a
: a seat in the choir of a church with back and sides wholly or partly enclosed
b
chiefly British
: a front orchestra seat in a theater
—usually used in plural
3
: a booth, stand, or counter at which articles are displayed for sale
4
: a small compartment
a shower stall
especially
: one with a toilet or urinal
stall
2 of 5 verb1
: to put into or keep in a stall
2
: to stop or cause to stop usually by accident
stall an engine
3
: to experience or cause (an aircraft) to experience a stall in flying
stall
3 of 5 noun
: the condition of an aircraft or a wing of an aircraft in which lift is lost and the aircraft or wing tends to drop
stall
4 of 5 noun
: a trick to deceive or delay
stall
5 of 5 verb
: to distract attention or make excuses to gain time
try to stall them until I get the place cleaned up
Etymology
Noun
Old English steall "stall for an animal"
Noun
an altered form of earlier stale "lure"
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