DCHP-1 Online
lasso ((n.)) † lassoo [< Am. E < Sp. lazo noose] 
n. a long rope, of ten, in earlier days, of braided rawhide or horsehair, having a running noose at one end, used for roping cattle, horses, etc.
See also: lariat (def. 1)
- 1856 "If you had travelled farther south, friend," replied Mr. Grant, "you would have seen the Spaniards of Mexico break in their wild horses in a very different way; for after catching one with a lasso, a fellow gets on his back and gives it the rein and the whip--ay, and the spur too; and before that race is over, there is no need for a curb."
- 1927 Men were at once told off into squads, some to collect the arms from the outlying traders . . . so that if the Indians pulled down parts of the stockade by lasso, as bravado prompted, there would still be a line of protection.
- 1965 The pilot of the plane lassoed a yearling caribou with a mooring rope as the herd rushed past him at a distance of about five yards.
- 1856 "If you had travelled farther south, friend," replied Mr. Grant, "you would have seen the Spaniards of Mexico break in their wild horses in a very different way; for after catching one with a lasso, a fellow gets on his back and gives it the rein and the whip--ay, and the spur too; and before that race is over, there is no need for a curb."