stopgap
noun
Synonyms
- expedient
- makeshift
Example Sentences
Fifth & Mission Podcast, San Francisco Chronicle, 8 Sep. 2022 One early stopgap was creating a floor stand for the kora, which enabled a player to toggle between two or even three differently tuned instruments. Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2022 The decision turned a stopgap to a major crisis into a permanent solution. John Jurgensen, WSJ, 27 July 2022 There is a lack of regulation, intervention and accountability: Without an official body to set, monitor and enforce guidelines, there can be no foolproof stopgap to ensure algorithmic integrity. Ricardo Baeza-yates, Forbes, 25 July 2022 Clocking in at just under a half hour, about as long as his 2021 reggae escapade #7DJ (7 Days In Jamaica), this relatively conservative stopgap EP mixes in a few strategic collaborations that speak to what’s happening now. Gary Suarez, Rolling Stone, 13 June 2022 As a stopgap measure, the United Nations has tapped into its Emergency Response Fund, but that is not enough, and not sustainable, Mr. Griffiths said. New York Times, 22 Aug. 2022 As a stopgap measure in the meantime, the District sent a onetime check to child-care workers for $10,000 to $14,000, and plans to continue supplementing their pay moving forward. Elliot Haspel, The Atlantic, 23 July 2022 That way, if something ever happens to your primary gig, your Plan B can seamlessly transition into Plan A—at least as a stopgap measure, and perhaps as a permanent one. Chris Taylor, Fortune, 14 July 2022 See More Word History
1684, in the meaning defined above
stopgap 1 of 2
noun
Synonyms & Similar Words
- makeshift
- substitute
- backup
- expedient
- recourse
- refuge
- alternate
- quick fix
- stand-in
- standby
- resort
- understudy
stopgap
2 of 2adjective
Synonyms & Similar Words
- makeshift
- backup
- substitute
- proxy
- make-do
- interim
- alternate
- temporary
- acting
- provisional
- provisory
- provisionary
- jackleg
- ad interim
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- permanent
- long-term
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of stopgap are expedient, makeshift, resort, resource, and shift. While all these words mean "something one turns to in the absence of the usual means or source of supply," stopgap applies to something used temporarily as an emergency measure.
The synonyms expedient and stopgap are sometimes interchangeable, but expedient may apply to any device or contrivance used when the usual one is not at hand or not possible.
While the synonyms makeshift and stopgap are close in meaning, makeshift implies an inferior expedient adopted because of urgent need or allowed through indifference.
Both resource and resort apply to anything one falls back upon.
The words shift and stopgap can be used in similar contexts, but shift implies a tentative or temporary imperfect expedient.