lasso

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a long rope with a sliding loop used especially to catch cattle or horses

   The ranch hand coiled the lasso before riding toward the stray calf.

2. 2
   verb

   to catch or secure a person, animal, or object with a lasso

   The rider managed to lasso the calf without injuring it.

3. 3
   noun

   a digital selection tool used to draw around an irregular area in an image

   Use the lasso to select the figure without including the background.

Borrowed from Spanish lazo 'snare, loop, or knot', from Latin laqueus 'noose'. It is a doublet of lace, which reached English through Old French.

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