prop

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun An object placed beneath or against a structure to keep it from falling or shaking; a support.
• noun One that serves as a means of support or assistance.
• transitive verb To support by placing something beneath or against; shore up.
• noun Any of the articles other than costumes and scenery used by an actor or performer during a performance on stage or in a film.
• noun Someone or something displayed to impress others or provide a false impression.
• noun A propeller.

from The Century Dictionary.

• noun A stick, staff, pole, rod, beam, or other rigid thing used to sustain an incumbent weight; that on which anything rests for support; a support; a stay; a fulcrum: usually applied to something not forming a part of the object supported: as, a prop for vines; a prop for an old wall.
• noun In botany, same as fulcrum, 3.
• noun plural Legs.
• noun Synonyms See staff.
• noun A shell used in the game of props. See props.
• noun An unexpected stop, as of a horse.
• To support or prevent from falling by placing something under or against: as, to prop a roof or wall.
• To support by standing under or against: as, a pillar props a roof; beams prop a wall.
• To support or sustain in a general sense: as, to prop a failing cause.
• To help; assist.
• To stop or pull up suddenly; balk: said of a horse or other beast.
• noun An abbreviation of proposition; properly.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• noun That which sustains an incumbent weight; that on which anything rests or leans for support; a support; a stay.
• noun A shell, used as a die. See props.
• transitive verb To support, or prevent from falling, by placing something under or against; ; (Fig.) to sustain; to maintain.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun theater, film An item placed on a stage or set to create a scene or scenario in which actors perform. Contraction of "property".
• noun A proposition, especially on an election-day ballot.
• noun The propeller of an aircraft.
• noun An object placed against or under another, to support it; anything that supports.
• noun rugby The player who is next to the hooker in a scrum.
• noun One of the seashells in the game of props.
• verb transitive To support or shore up something.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun a support placed beneath or against something to keep it from shaking or falling
• noun any movable articles or objects used on the set of a play or movie
• noun a propeller that rotates to push against air
• verb support by placing against something solid or rigid