| 释义 |
ˈdrag-staff|-stɑːf, -æ-|
A trailing pole hinged to the rear of a vehicle to check its backward movement when it stops in a steep ascent.
1769De Foe's Tour Gt. Brit. II. 299 The Coach wanting a Dragstaff, it ran back, in spite of all the Coachman's Skill. 1794W. Felton Carriages (1801) II. Gloss. 6. 1806 Miss Mitford in L'Estrange Life (1870) I. 53 The horses ran back on a very steep hill, and nothing but the drag⁓staff could have saved our lives. |