scupper

1 of 2

noun

scup·​per ˈskə-pər How to pronounce scupper (audio)
1
: an opening cut through the bulwarks of a ship so that water falling on deck may flow overboard
2
: an opening in the wall of a building through which water can drain from a floor or flat roof

scupper

2 of 2

verb

scuppered; scuppering; scuppers

transitive verb

chiefly British
: to defeat or put an end to : do in sense 1a

Did you know?

Scupper Has Military Origins

All efforts to figure out where this verb came from have been defeated, including attempts to connect it to the noun scupper, a 500-year-old word for a drain opening in the side of a ship. (One conjecture, that the blood of shipboard battle was "scuppered" when it was washed down the scuppers, unfortunately lacks backing in the form of any actual evidence of the verb used this way.) All we know for sure is that scupper meant "to ambush and massacre" in 19th-century military slang. Then, just before the century turned, it found its place in a magazine story in the sense of simply "doing (someone) in." The more common modern application to things rather than people being done in or defeated didn't appear until a couple of decades into the 20th century.

Examples of scupper in a Sentence

Verb The latest information could scupper the peace talks.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The hull is sealed, except for a few small holes called scuppers that act as drains for any water that does find its way onto the deck. Chantae Reden, Popular Mechanics, 31 May 2023 Without a transducer scupper or pod, the best option is to use a transducer arm. Ric Burnley, Field & Stream, 3 May 2023 Some kayaks have a special scupper to accommodate a side-imaging transducer. Ric Burnley, Field & Stream, 3 May 2023 The transducer has to fit in a scupper and the cable should be easy to route to the display. Ric Burnley, Field & Stream, 3 May 2023 But as a high-interest rate environment proliferates, this further scuppers IPOs and M&A activity for the banks and puts further pressure on institutions struggling to operate. Q.ai - Powering A Personal Wealth Movement, Forbes, 3 May 2023 Spa Terrace Behind a hot tub replete with waterfall scuppers lies some of the property’s copious natural ledge rock. Owen Holmes, House Beautiful, 23 Mar. 2023 Biden's hopes of reviving a nuclear deal with Iran may already be on the rocks if Tehran hardliners scupper dialogue. Stephen Collinson, CNN, 14 Apr. 2021 To best avoid ice dams, IBHS has created safety guidelines to follow: Keep drains, scuppers, gutters, and downspouts clear of debris. Madison Alcedo, Country Living, 19 Jan. 2018
Verb
And yet the very nature of Modi’s authority, the aggressive control sought by the prime minister and his party over a staggeringly diverse and complicated country, threatens to scupper India’s great-power ambitions. Ramachandra Guha, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024 But that plan was scuppered again a few weeks later when the companies and the FDA backtracked. Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, 13 Sep. 2023 About 84 percent of patent applications denied by the US Patent and Trademark Office in the 12 months ending September 2023 were scuppered at least in part by prior art, according to the agency. Paresh Dave, WIRED, 20 Feb. 2024 And European officials repeatedly pressed their American counterparts about Washington’s inability so far to pass a $60 billion U.S. aid package for Ukraine, which passed the Senate but may yet be scuppered by Republicans in the House. Erika Solomon, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2024 The Klamath River dam removal project has begun, with four of its six dams—J.C. Boyle, Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, and Iron Gate—set to be scuppered by the end of the year, and the drawdown started this week. Alka Tripathy-Lang, Ars Technica, 11 Jan. 2024 At the time, workers were trying to gain union recognition, and the GMB union has since accused Amazon of deliberately hiring hundreds of extra staff to scupper the vote. WIRED, 19 Oct. 2023 This was deemed the best way forward after efforts to refer Syria to the International Criminal Court were scuppered by Russia and China’s 2014 vetoes at the U.N. Security Council. Taylor Luck, The Christian Science Monitor, 12 Oct. 2023 At worst, the conflict may derail the normalization talks and scupper any additional Saudi oil flows that may have resulted. Grant Smith, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'scupper.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English skopper- (in compounds), perhaps from Anglo-French *escopoir, from escopir to spit out

Verb

origin unknown

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1899, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of scupper was in the 15th century

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Dictionary Entries Near scupper

Cite this Entry

“Scupper.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scupper. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

scupper

noun
scup·​per
ˈskəp-ər
: an opening above the upper deck in the side of a boat through which water drains overboard
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