A Stoop Is a Porch in New York and a Posture Everywhere
To stoop is to bend forward. In American cities a stoop is also the front steps, from a Dutch word.
To stoop is to bend the head and shoulders forward, and figuratively to lower yourself morally. A separate word spelled the same means the front steps of a house, and it is a New York inheritance: Dutch *stoep* meant a raised entrance platform, necessary in the Netherlands because of flooding, and Dutch settlers built them in Manhattan. The stoop became a fixture of New York social life. To *stoop to conquer* comes from Goldsmith's play title of 1773.
- To bend forward. *Stoop to pick it up.*
- A rounded posture. *A pronounced stoop.*
- Front steps (US). *Sitting on the stoop.*
- To lower oneself. *I would not stoop to that.*
- Dutch — *stoep*, a platform. *The steps source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | stoop | Stoop down. |
| Past | stooped | Stooped. |
| Noun | stoop | A stoop. |
| Adjective | stooped | Stooped. |
| Dutch | stoep | A platform. |
- He stooped to enter the low doorway.Posture.
- They sat talking on the stoop.New York.
- She would not stoop to lying.Moral.
Dutch traces in New York
- Stoop — from *stoep*, a raised entrance platform
- Brooklyn — from Breukelen, a Dutch town
- Harlem — from Haarlem
- Bowery — from *bouwerij*, a farm
- Coney Island — from *konijn*, a rabbit
The verb is Old English *stupian*, to bow down. The steps are from Dutch *stoep*, a raised platform at a house door.
Why do New York houses have stoops?
Dutch settlers built raised entrance platforms as they did at home, where flooding made them necessary, and the style stayed.
Are the two stoops related?
No. The posture verb is Old English; the steps come from Dutch stoep.