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stopgap

[ stop-gap ]

/ ˈstɒpˌgæp /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR stopgap ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

something that fills the place of something else that is lacking; temporary substitute; makeshift: Candles are a stopgap when the electricity fails.

adjective

makeshift: This is only a stopgap solution.

Origin of stopgap

First recorded in 1525–35; noun, adj. use of verb phrase stop a gap

SYNONYMS FOR stopgap

2 improvised, temporary, substitute, impromptu.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR stopgap ON THESAURUS.COM

Words nearby stopgap

stopbank, stopcock, stope, stoper, stopes, stopgap, stoping, stoplight, stoplight party, stopover, stoppable

Example sentences from the Web for stopgap

He has left millions of homeowners to fend for themselves, and even his health care plan is really only a stopgap measure.

Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Live In: Kevin Baker’s New York |Allen Barra |September 23, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
His “strategists” have concocted a series of stopgap tactics.

How Mitt Romney Can Win the First Debate With Obama |Robert Shrum |September 25, 2012 |DAILY BEAST
As for Fattorosi of XPays, he sees the lawsuits as only a stopgap.

Behind the Porn Piracy Crackdown |Richard Abowitz |April 2, 2011 |DAILY BEAST
But even Joffe admits that a better radar and rapid reaction system is only a partial, stopgap solution.

Cyber-Terror: The New Nukes? |Trevor Butterworth |September 27, 2010 |DAILY BEAST

In this his Christian neighbours liked him well, insomuch as he was a kind of stay or stopgap to the infidels.

Secret Diplomatic History of The Eighteenth Century |Karl Marx
She was going as a stopgap to speak at a large meeting to oblige Angelica.

The Beth Book |Sarah Grand
However, a stopgap was found in the person of the book-keeper, a young Englishman, who knew more of music than accounts.

A Little Bush Maid |Mary Grant Bruce
It's a stopgap effort, just to keep things moving until Project Sea-Dredge starts functioning.

The Hunted Heroes |Robert Silverberg
Because Brownlee knows why I'm looking for a cure to replace the stopgap.

Nor Iron Bars a Cage.... |Gordon Randall Garrett

British Dictionary definitions for stopgap

stopgap

/ (ˈstɒpˌɡæp) /

noun

a temporary substitute for something else
(as modifier)a stopgap programme