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| stroke [ strōk ] |
noun (plural strokes) |
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1. stoppage of blood flow to brain: a sudden blockage or rupture of a blood vessel in the brain resulting in, e.g. loss of consciousness, partial loss of movement, or loss of speech. Technical name cerebrovascular accident
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2. sudden occurrence: a sudden instance or occurrence of something that has a strong or unexpected effect
 a stroke of luck
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3. hitting of ball: in racket games or golf, the hitting of a ball or the way in which this is done
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4. swimming single movement in swimming: a single complete movement of the arms and legs when swimming
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5. swimming swimming style: a style of swimming, using the arms and legs in a specific way
 a difficult swimming stroke
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6. mechanical engineering movement of piston: a single movement, up or down, of a piston in an engine, or the distance that a piston travels in a single movement
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7. graphic arts brush or pen line: a single line or mark made with a brush or pen
 a brush stroke
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8. graphic arts single movement of brush or pen: a single movement of a brush or pen to make a line or mark
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9. verbal encouragement: a usually positive comment or statement, e.g. a compliment made by one person to another
 I need all the positive strokes I can get right now.
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10. striking of clock: a single sound made by a clock that is striking
 at the stroke of seven
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11. hit: a hit or blow made by the hand, a cane, or a tool
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12. caressing movement: a gentle caressing movement of the hand over fur, hair, or skin
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13. single movement in series: a single movement forming part of a series of movements, e.g. the beat of a wing or the swing of a pendulum
 a wing stroke
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14. rowing single pull: in rowing, a single movement of the oars through the water
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15. rowing rowing style: a particular rowing style
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16. rowing rower who keeps time: a rower in a racing boat who sets the pace for the crew
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17. U.K. printing Same as slashn (sense 5)
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18. additional feature: a small additional feature that has an effect on the style or nature of something
 a stroke of sarcasm
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19. psychology element of social recognition: in transactional analysis, a unit of social recognition between two or more people that, in its simplest form, can be a one-word greeting such as "hello"
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verb (past and past participle stroked, present participle strok·ing, 3rd person present singular strokes) |
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1. transitive verb caress something: to move the hand gently over something as if caressing it
 stroked the cat gently
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2. transitive verb hit ball smoothly: in various sports, to hit or kick a ball smoothly
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3. transitive verb compliment somebody: to behave in an encouraging or solicitous way toward somebody as a way of persuading or eliciting cooperation
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4. intransitive verb rowing move oars: to row at a particular speed or rate of the oars
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5. transitive verb rowing set rowing pace: to be the rower who sets the pace for the crew
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6. transitive verb push something gently: to push something somewhere gently with a light movement of the hand
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7. transitive verb cross something out: to draw a line through something
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adjective |
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U.S. pornographic: relating to or of the nature of pornography
(
slang
)
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| [ Old English strācian< Indo-European, "rub, press"] |
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different strokes for different folks used to emphasize that people are all individuals and that what suits one will not necessarily suit another (dated slang)
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