(一般作scuppers)
1- a hole in a ship's side to carry water overboard from the deck甲板排水孔。
1.1
- an outlet in the side of a building for draining water建筑物的排（泄）水口。
词源
late Middle English:perhaps via Anglo-Norman French from Old French escopir 'to spit'; compare with German Speigatt, literally 'spit hole'.
with obj.
1- chiefly Brit. sink (a ship or its crew) deliberately〈主英〉故意使船（或全体船员）沉没。
1.1
- informal prevent from working or succeeding; thwart〈非正式〉阻碍; 阻挠; 挫败; 反对：
plans for a bypass were scuppered by a public inquiry.
建造旁路的计划由于公众的调查而受挫。
词源
late 19th cent. （as military slang in the sense 'kill， especially in an ambush'）：of unknown origin. The sense 'sink' dates from the 1970s.