trapdoor
noun
trap·door
ˈtrap-ˈdȯr 
: a lifting or sliding door covering an opening (as in a roof, ceiling, or floor)
Examples of trapdoor in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The stage included rising platforms and trapdoors that allowed Madonna and her 26 dancers to appear and disappear with the precision of a Broadway cast.
—
Stefan Stevenson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Mar. 2024
At one point in the tour, visitors were asked to climb through a trapdoor in a floor and descend an unsecured ladder with flashlights to a dark basement.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
But wait, there’s more: A separate, ventilated shoe compartment opens up from the bottom of the backpack like a trapdoor.
—L.a. Hubilla, Peoplemag, 10 Apr. 2024
At one point, the host of the tour opened a trapdoor in the floor for customers to descend a shaky, unsecured ladder into a dark hole.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
But the contract had been drawn with a trapdoor at Article 20, a clause that transported you across the world.
—Jesse Barron, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2024
Also known as trapdoor functions, these problems are easy to compute in one direction and substantially harder to compute in reverse.
—Jeanne Timmons, Ars Technica, 20 Sep. 2023
Ultimately though, Henning decided to take the plunge and walk down into the trapdoor.
—Ashley Paige, Peoplemag, 21 June 2023
Little trapdoors open up to show a shadowy Karl, or an ominous phone, or a radio set in who knows where.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 4 Dec. 2023
Stefan Stevenson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Mar. 2024
At one point in the tour, visitors were asked to climb through a trapdoor in a floor and descend an unsecured ladder with flashlights to a dark basement.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
But wait, there’s more: A separate, ventilated shoe compartment opens up from the bottom of the backpack like a trapdoor.
—L.a. Hubilla, Peoplemag, 10 Apr. 2024
At one point, the host of the tour opened a trapdoor in the floor for customers to descend a shaky, unsecured ladder into a dark hole.
—Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
But the contract had been drawn with a trapdoor at Article 20, a clause that transported you across the world.
—Jesse Barron, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2024
Also known as trapdoor functions, these problems are easy to compute in one direction and substantially harder to compute in reverse.
—Jeanne Timmons, Ars Technica, 20 Sep. 2023
Ultimately though, Henning decided to take the plunge and walk down into the trapdoor.
—Ashley Paige, Peoplemag, 21 June 2023
Little trapdoors open up to show a shadowy Karl, or an ominous phone, or a radio set in who knows where.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 4 Dec. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'trapdoor.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near trapdoor
Cite this Entry
“Trapdoor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trapdoor. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
trapdoor
noun
trap·door
ˈtrap-ˈdō(ə)r
-ˈdȯ(ə)r
: a lifting or sliding door covering or hiding an opening in a roof, ceiling, or floor
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