the ropes
plural noun
1
: the special way things are done at a particular place or in a particular activity
The veteran cop showed the rookie the ropes.
It will take a few weeks for new employees to learn the ropes.
someone who knows the ropes
2
: a fence made of rope that encloses a boxing or wrestling ring
The boxer was pushed back against the ropes.
Examples of the ropes in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Learning the ropes During a break from an intersquad scrimmage last week at Settlers Park, Team Scheels formed a circle along with their coaches and played Hot Potato with a football for a few minutes.
—
Rachel Roberts, Idaho Statesman, 26 Apr. 2024
After outrageous court outbursts from Auntie Rae and Susie put Larry on the ropes, Jerry Seinfeld (playing himself) shows up in Atlanta for support and a less-than-urgent chat about bearded ladies.
—William Earl, Variety, 8 Apr. 2024
The rescuers had managed to cut away the ropes and free the humpback whale.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024
That has left hundreds of writers out of work, as The CW previously served as a way for new scribes to learn the ropes.
—Lesley Goldberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Apr. 2024
The gallows were there; so were the ropes and, most chilling, the screaming faces of white men and women yelling for the blood of Mike Pence.
—Scott MacFarlane, CBS News, 18 Mar. 2024
And Agnes is trying and failing to the learn the ropes of her new lifestyle of fishing and homemaking, and isn’t helped by the constant interfering supervision of her mother-in-law (Maria Hofstätter).
—Jessica Kiang, Variety, 20 Feb. 2024
Since learning the ropes from Abraham, Suzette has kept helping her parents run the company in Corpus Christie, which also works on tribute projects for Selena.
—Selena Barrientos, Peoplemag, 16 Feb. 2024
Exploring Your Options Over the past few years, some colleges have intensified their efforts to offer resources for anyone keen to learn the ropes of leadership, with or without a full-fledged degree.
—Arush Chandna, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Rachel Roberts, Idaho Statesman, 26 Apr. 2024
After outrageous court outbursts from Auntie Rae and Susie put Larry on the ropes, Jerry Seinfeld (playing himself) shows up in Atlanta for support and a less-than-urgent chat about bearded ladies.
—William Earl, Variety, 8 Apr. 2024
The rescuers had managed to cut away the ropes and free the humpback whale.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024
That has left hundreds of writers out of work, as The CW previously served as a way for new scribes to learn the ropes.
—Lesley Goldberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Apr. 2024
The gallows were there; so were the ropes and, most chilling, the screaming faces of white men and women yelling for the blood of Mike Pence.
—Scott MacFarlane, CBS News, 18 Mar. 2024
And Agnes is trying and failing to the learn the ropes of her new lifestyle of fishing and homemaking, and isn’t helped by the constant interfering supervision of her mother-in-law (Maria Hofstätter).
—Jessica Kiang, Variety, 20 Feb. 2024
Since learning the ropes from Abraham, Suzette has kept helping her parents run the company in Corpus Christie, which also works on tribute projects for Selena.
—Selena Barrientos, Peoplemag, 16 Feb. 2024
Exploring Your Options Over the past few years, some colleges have intensified their efforts to offer resources for anyone keen to learn the ropes of leadership, with or without a full-fledged degree.
—Arush Chandna, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'the ropes.' 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 the ropes
Cite this Entry
“The ropes.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20ropes. Accessed 1 May. 2024.
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