strut
/stɹʌt/US/stɹʌt/
strut verb: of a peacock or other fowl: to stand or walk stiffly, with the tail erect and spread out.
Verb (1)
strut (third-person singular simple present struts, present participle strutting, simple past and past participle strutted)
- Of a peacock or other fowl: to stand or walk stiffly, with the tail erect and spread out.
- Hark, hark, I heare, the ſtraine of ſtrutting Chanticlere cry cockadidle-dowe.1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published...
- The pheasant strutteth about in the midst of flowers; / The turtle-dove cooeth, and the nightingale warbleth from the cypress.1883, Ferdusī [i.e., Ferdowsi], “The Gardens of Afrasiab”, in S[amuel] Robinson, transl., Persian Poetry for English Readers: Being Specimens of Six of the Greatest Classical Poets of Persia...
- To walk haughtily or proudly with one's head held high.
- He strutted about the yard, thinking himself master of all he surveyed.
- [O]h, I ſhould remember him: do's he not hold vp his head (as it were?) and ſtrut in his gate?c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merry Wiues of Windsor”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
- Synonyms:
- swagger, high-side, aura farm, boulevardier, cut a wide swath, cut it fat, cut round, exhibitionize, figure away, flamboast
- To walk across or on (a stage or other place) haughtily or proudly.
- Taking you and your colleagues as the model of modern times, I should almost fear that the John Bull of former days was as different from the John Bull of the present time, as is a broad-shouldered, fearless Highlandman from the dapper cockney who struts the Park by the side of his fellow-milliner.1827, S[olomon] Atkinson, The Effects of the New System of Free Trade upon Our Shipping, Colonies & Commerce, Exposed in a Letter to the Right Hon. W[illiam] Huskisson, President of the Board of...
- The frantic father struts the stage, / And swells with true sublimity of rage / Against his son, who leads a wanton life, / And scorns the offer of a dowried wife.1838, Horace, “Satire IV”, in David Hunter, transl., The Satires and Epistles of Horace, London: John W[illiam] Parker, […], →OCLC, book I, pages 20–21, lines 63–66
- Often followed by out: to protuberate or stick out due to being full or swollen; to bulge, to swell.
- Sometimes [the clitoris] groweth to such a length that it hangeth without the cleft like a mans member, especially when it is fretted with the touch of the cloaths, and so strutteth and groweth to a rigiditie as doth the yarde [penis] of a man.1631, Helkiah Crooke, Μικροκοσμογραφια [Mikrokosmographia]. A Description of the Body of Man. […], 2nd edition, London: […] Thomas and Richard Cotes, and are to be sold by Michael Sparke, […], →OCLC...
- If the right breaſt ſwell and ſtrut out the Boy is well, if it flag it is a ſign of miſcarriage, judge the ſame of the Girle by the left breaſt, when it is ſunk, or round and hard, the firſt ſignifies abortion to be near, the other health and ſafety both of the Mother and the Child.1671, Jane Sharp, “Of the Sympathy between the Womb and Other Parts, and How It is Wrought upon by Them”, in The Midwives Book. Or The Whole Art of Midwifry Discovered. […], London: […] Simon Miller...
- Often followed by out: to cause (something) to bulge, protrude, or swell.
- [H]e gains the glitt'ring prize, / And ſtruts the gaudy food of gazing eyes, / A thing—that oft his Footmen may deſpiſe.[1746?], One Thousand, Seven Hundred, and Forty-five. A Satiric Epistle after the Manner of Mr. [Alexander] Pope, London; Dublin: […] J. Kinneir, […], and A. Long, […], →OCLC, page 5
- Synonyms:
- distend
Noun (1)
strut (plural struts)
- A step or walk done stiffly and with the head held high, often due to haughtiness or pride; affected dignity in walking.
- Putting on his hat, and thrusting both hands into the pockets of his trousers, he marched with a nonchalant strut out of the room, [...]1860 October 6 – 1861 July 6, Pierce Egan [the Younger], chapter LXXVI, in The Wonder of Kingswood Chace, London: E. & H. Bennett, […], published [1890], →OCLC, page 418, column 2
- An instrument for adjusting the pleats of a ruff.
Noun (2)
strut (plural struts)
- A beam or rod providing support.
- This alteration will obviate the necessity for the injudicious iron struts which are now introduced between the backs of the columns and the face of the pilasters, and which, in a practical point of view, afford little or no advantage, except against a direct shock; and even in many such cases they...1833 August 26, R. Macdonald Stephenson, Charles J. Blunt, “Blackfriars’ Bridge Repairs”, in The Mechanics’ Magazine, Museum, Register, Journal, and Gazette, volume XX, number 551, London: M. Salmon...
- Replacing and Aligining Wing-tip Float Struts. Loosen the brace wires and stagger wires on the wing-tip float. Remove the bolts or pins from the strut fittings, both on the float and on the wing surface; then lift the strut out. Carefully replace the strut in a like manner. This is a very simple...1919 July, M. E. Williams et al., “Seaplane No. 3, Seaplane No. 4 (Boat Type)”, in United States Navy Aviation Mechanics’ Training System for Plane Maintenance Force: Course Manual for...
- Synonyms:
- rib
- An act of strutting (“bracing or supporting (something) by a strut or struts (sense 1); attaching diagonally; bending at a sharp angle”); specifically, deviation (of the spoke of a wheel) from the normal position.
Verb (2)
strut (third-person singular simple present struts, present participle strutting, simple past and past participle strutted)
- To brace or support (something) by a strut or struts; to hold (something) in place or strengthen by a diagonal, transverse, or upright support.
- Masonry flying arches strutting the retaining walls in Chorley cutting, Manchester-Blackpool line, L.M.S.R.1939 November, “Pertinent Paragraphs”, in Railway Magazine, page 358, photo caption
- To be attached diagonally or at a slant; also, to be bent at a sharp angle.
Adjective
strut (comparative more strut, superlative most strut)
- Swelling out due to being full; bulging, protuberant, swollen.
- Drunk, intoxicated; fou.
- Synonyms:
- Adrian Quist, adrip, aled up, all mops and brooms, arseholed, a sheet in the wind, a sheet in the wind's eye, bedrunken, befuddled, beliquored
- Antonyms:
- clearheaded, dry, on the wagon, sober, sober as a judge, stone-cold sober, undrunken, unintoxicated
strut meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu
strut in Hindi
- to walk haughtily or proudly
- इतराना itrānā
- step or walk done stiffly with the head held high
- अकड़ akaṛ
- beam or rod providing support
- टेक ṭek
strut in Tamil
- உதைசட்டம், உதைகால், மூட்டு, உதை சட்டம், காவாங்கு, குறுந்தடி
strut in Marathi
- स्ट्रट, स्ट्रुट, स्ट्रूट
strut in Urdu
- اینٹھنا, اکڑفوں بن کر چلنا, مٹکنا
More languagesFewer languages
- strut in Bengali
- গর্বভরে হাঁটা, বুক ফুলিয়ে হাঁটা
- strut in Telugu
- స్ట్రట్
- strut in Malayalam
- ധിക്കാരനടത്തം, തലയെടുപ്പ്, ഭാവനാട്യം, താങ്ങ്
- strut in Kannada
- ಗುಜ್ಜು, ಆನಿಕೆ
- strut in Punjabi
- ਸਟ੍ਰਟ
- strut in Gujarati
- સ્ટ્રુટ, સ્ટ્રટ
- strut in Odia
- ଷ୍ଟ୍ରୁଟ୍, ଷ୍ଟ୍ରଟ୍
- strut in Nepali
- स्ट्रट, स्ट्रुट, स्ट्रट गर्न
- strut in Arabic
- تَبَخْتَر tabaḵtar
- strut in Persian
- خرامیدن xerâmidan
- strut in Thai
- เดินวางมาด
Examples of strut in a sentence
- He thought that whenne Thanksgyving came he'd looke soe payle & thynne, / He colde avoid ye usual role ye Turkye strutteth inne.1887 November 24, “Ye Scheme of Ye Turkye Bold: Ytts Faylure”, in Life, volume X, number 256, New York, N.Y.: Published at the Life Office...
- Moorhens strutted from the neighbouring bushes, and a bevy of Muscovy ducks, a study in black, white and red, waddled from the farmyard hard by to enjoy a refreshing splash.1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 217:
- Hast thou nor shame, nor modesty, nor fear? / That thus thou struttest in the face of God, / Spreading thy peacock's feathers, with their gleam?1867, Peter Macmorland, “A Preacher.—I. Sonnet.”, in Sabbath, an Ode: With Poems Suited to the Communion Season, 2nd edition, Edinburgh: H....
- "Hilloa, good fellow," quoth he, in a jovial voice, "who art thou that struttest in such gay feathers?"1883, Howard Pyle, “Robin Hood Compasseth the Marriage of Two True Lovers”, in The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood […], New York, N.Y.: […]...
Synonyms of strut
- swagger
- high-side
- aura farm
- boulevardier
- cut a wide swath
- exhibitionize
- flex
- floss
- fluff one's feathers
- gallery
30 more synonymsFewer synonyms
- let one's nuts hang
- preen
- showboat
- show off
- strut one's stuff
- stunt
- swag it out
- swank
- three-sheet
- yaya
- distend
- rib
- Adrian Quist
- adrip
- aled up
- all mops and brooms
- arseholed
- a sheet in the wind
- a sheet in the wind's eye
- bedrunken
- befuddled
- beliquored
- besotted
- besotten
- bevvied
- bibacious
- bibulous
- binned
- bingoed
- bladdered
Antonyms
Forms of strut
| Verb | |
|---|---|
| third-person singular present | struts |
| present participle | strutting |
| past participle | strutted |
| past | strutted |
| alternative form | strout |
| second-person singular present (archaic) | struttest |
| second-person singular past (archaic) | struttedst |
| third-person singular present (archaic) | strutteth |
| Noun | |
| plural | struts |
| Adjective | |
| comparative | more strut |
| superlative | most strut |
Origin of strut
The verb is derived from Middle English strouten, struten (“to bulge, swell; to protrude, stick out; to bluster, threaten; to object forcefully; to create a disturbance; to fight; to display one's clothes in a proud or vain manner”) [and other forms], from Old English strūtian (“to project out; stand out stiffly; to exert oneself, struggle”), from Proto-Germanic *strūtōną, *strūtijaną (“to be puffed up, swell”), from Proto-Indo-European *streudʰ- (“rigid, stiff”), from *(s)ter- (“firm; strong; rigid, stiff”). The English word is cognate with Danish strutte (“to bulge, bristle”), Low German strutt (“stiff”), Middle High German striuzen (“to bristle; to ruffle”) (modern German strotzen (“to bristle up”), sträußen (obsolete, except in Alemannic)); and compare Gothic 𐌸𐍂𐌿𐍄𐍃𐍆𐌹𐌻𐌻 (þrutsfill, “leprosy”), Old Norse þrútinn (“swollen”). The noun is derived from the verb. Noun sense 2 (“instrument for adjusting the pleats of a ruff”) appears to be due to a misreading of a 16th-century work which used the word stroout (strouted (“caused (something) to bulge, protrude, or swell; strutted”)).
The origin of sense 1 of the noun (“beam or rod providing support”) is unknown; it is probably ultimately from Proto-Germanic *strūtōną, *strūtijaną (“to be puffed up, swell”): see further at etymology 1. The English word is cognate with Icelandic strútur (“hood jutting out like a horn”), Low German strutt (“rigid, stiff”), Norwegian strut (“nozzle, spout”), Swedish strut (“paper cornet”). The verb is derived from sense 1 of the noun. Sense 2 of the noun (“act of strutting”) is derived from the verb: see above.
Probably an archaic past participle of strut (“to (cause something to) bulge, protrude, or swell”), now replaced by strutted: see etymology 1.
Words formed from strut
Words that rhyme with strut
Questions about strut
- What does strut mean?
- Strut means of a peacock or other fowl: to stand or walk stiffly, with the tail erect and spread out.
- What is strut in Hindi?
- Strut in Hindi is इतराना (itrānā), अकड़ (akaṛ), टेक (ṭek). See Strut meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use strut in a sentence?
- He thought that whenne Thanksgyving came he'd looke soe payle & thynne, / He colde avoid ye usual role ye Turkye strutteth inne.
- What part of speech is strut?
- Strut can be a verb, a noun or an adjective.
- How do you pronounce strut?
- Strut is pronounced /stɹʌt/ (UK).
- What is the past tense of strut?
- The past tense of strut is strutted.
Words near strut in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: strut (page history and authors); strut (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); strut (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); strut (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); strut (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); strut (Telugu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); strut (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); strut (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); strut (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); strut (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); strut (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); strut (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this entry: “strut.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/strut. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.