stalls

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of stall.

   Vendors set up their stalls along the riverside each weekend.

   The restroom had only three stalls, so the line stretched down the hall.

   Note

   One spelling does two jobs here, because stalls is also the present-tense verb: a groom stalls a horse in one of the stable's stalls. As a plural noun it covers every kind of stall: compartments for single animals, open-fronted booths in a market or food court, shower stalls, and theater seats near stage level, once set apart from benches by their arms or partial enclosure.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of stall.

   The engine stalls if the fuel mixture runs too lean.

   She stalls for time whenever the negotiations reach a difficult point.

   Note

   The -s form belongs with he, she or it: a farmer stalls his cattle, but they stall theirs. Behind it stands a broader verb than most readers expect. It can mean to fatten livestock, to install someone in office with due formality, to forestall, or to keep something close and secret. The old meaning "to dwell" is obsolete, so stalls should not be used that way today.

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