Adjacent Words

Lap definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

LAP, n.
1. The loose part of a coat; the lower part of a garment that plays loosely.
2. The part of clothes that lies on the knees when a person sits down; hence, the knees in this position.
Men expect that happiness should drop into their laps.
LAP, v.t.
1. To fold; to bend and lay over or on; as, to lap a piece of cloth.
To lap boards, is to lay one partly over another.
2. To wrap or twist round.
I lapped a slender thread about the paper.
3. To infold; to involve.
Her garment spreads, and laps him in the folds.
LAP, v.i. To be spread or laid; to be turned over.
The upper wings are opacous; at their hinder ends where they lap over, transparent like the wing of a fly.
LAP, v.i. [Gr. If m is casual in L. lambo, as it probably is, this is the same word.]
To take up liquor or food with the tongue; to feed or drink by licking.
The dogs by the river Nilus' side being thirsty, lap hastily as they run along the shore.
And the number of them that lapped were three hundred men. Judges 7.
LAP, v.t. To take into the mouth with the tongue; to lick up; as, a cat laps milk.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the upper side of the thighs of a seated person; "he picked up the little girl and plopped her down in his lap"
2: an area of control or responsibility; "the job fell right in my lap"
3: the part of a piece of clothing that covers the thighs; "his lap was covered with food stains" [syn: lap, lap covering]
4: a flap that lies over another part; "the lap of the shingles should be at least ten inches" [syn: lap, overlap]
5: movement once around a course; "he drove an extra lap just for insurance" [syn: lap, circle, circuit]
6: touching with the tongue; "the dog's laps were warm and wet" [syn: lick, lap] v
1: lie partly over or alongside of something or of one another
2: pass the tongue over; "the dog licked her hand" [syn: lick, lap]
3: move with or cause to move with a whistling or hissing sound; "The bubbles swoshed around in the glass"; "The curtain swooshed open" [syn: lap, swish, swosh, swoosh]
4: take up with the tongue; "The cat lapped up the milk"; "the cub licked the milk from its mother's breast" [syn: lap, lap up, lick]
5: wash or flow against; "the waves laved the shore" [syn: lave, lap, wash]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English lappe, from Old English læppa; akin to Old High German lappa flap Date: before 12th century 1. a. a loose overlapping or hanging panel or flap especially of a garment b. archaic the skirt of a coat or dress 2. a. the clothing that lies on the knees, thighs, and lower part of the trunk when one sits b. the front part of the lower trunk and thighs of a seated person 3. responsible custody ; control <going to drop the whole thing in your lap — Hamilton Basso> • lapful noun II. verb (lapped; lapping) Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to fold over or around something ; wind b. to envelop entirely ; swathe 2. to fold over especially into layers 3. to hold protectively in or as if in the lap ; cuddle 4. a. to place over and cover a part of ; overlap <lap shingles on a roof> b. to join (as two boards) by a lap joint 5. a. to dress, smooth, or polish (as a metal surface) to a high degree of refinement or accuracy b. to shape or fit by working two surfaces together with or without abrasives until a very close fit is produced 6. a. to overtake and thereby lead or increase the lead over (another contestant) by a full circuit of a racecourse b. to complete the circuit of (a racecourse) intransitive verb 1. fold, wind 2. a. to project beyond or spread over something b. to lie partly over or alongside of something or of one another ; overlap 3. to traverse a course • lapper noun III. noun Date: 1800 1. a. the amount by which one object overlaps or projects beyond another b. the part of an object that overlaps another 2. a smoothing and polishing tool usually consisting of a piece of wood, leather, felt, or soft metal in a special shape used with or without an embedded abrasive 3. a doubling or layering of a flexible substance (as fibers or paper) 4. a. the act or an instance of traversing a course (as a racing track or swimming pool); also the distance covered b. one segment of a larger unit (as a journey) c. one complete turn (as of a rope around a drum) IV. verb (lapped; lapping) Etymology: Middle English, from Old English lapian; akin to Old High German laffan to lick, Latin lambere, Greek laphyssein to devour Date: before 12th century intransitive verb 1. to take in food or drink with the tongue 2. a. to make a gentle intermittent splashing sound b. to move in little waves ; wash transitive verb 1. a. to take in (food or drink) with the tongue b. to take in or absorb eagerly or quickly — used with up <the crowd lapped up every word he said> 2. to flow or splash against in little waves • lapper noun V. noun Date: 14th century 1. a. an act or instance of lapping b. the amount that can be carried to the mouth by one lick or scoop of the tongue 2. a thin or weak beverage or food 3. a gentle splashing sound

U.S. Military Dictionary

(*) In naval mine warfare, that section or strip of an area assigned to a single sweeper or formation of sweepers for a run through the area.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

1. n. 1 a the front of the body from the waist to the knees of a sitting person (sat on her lap; caught it in his lap). b the clothing, esp. a skirt, covering the lap. c the front of a skirt held up to catch or contain something. 2 a hollow among hills. 3 a hanging flap on a garment, a saddle, etc. Phrases and idioms: in (or on) a person's lap as a person's responsibility. in the lap of the gods (of an event etc.) open to chance; beyond human control. in the lap of luxury in extremely luxurious surroundings. lap-dog a small pet dog. lap robe US a travelling-rug. Derivatives: lapful n. (pl. -fuls). Etymology: OE læppa fold, flap 2. n. & v. --n. 1 a one circuit of a racetrack etc. b a section of a journey etc. (finally we were on the last lap). 2 a an amount of overlapping. b an overlapping or projecting part. 3 a a layer or sheet (of cotton etc. being made) wound on a roller. b a single turn of rope, silk, thread, etc., round a drum or reel. 4 a rotating disk for polishing a gem or metal. --v. (lapped, lapping) 1 tr. lead or overtake (a competitor in a race) by one or more laps. 2 tr. (often foll. by about, round) coil, fold, or wrap (a garment etc.) round esp. a person. 3 tr. (usu. foll. by in) enfold or swathe (a person) in wraps etc. 4 tr. (as lapped adj.) (usu. foll. by in) protectively encircled; enfolded caressingly. 5 tr. surround (a person) with an influence etc. 6 intr. (usu. foll. by over) project; overlap. 7 tr. cause to overlap. 8 tr. polish (a gem etc.) with a lap. Phrases and idioms: half-lap = lap joint. lap joint the joining of rails, shafts, etc., by halving the thickness of each at the joint and fitting them together. lap of honour a ceremonial circuit of a football pitch, a track, etc., by a winner or winners. lap-strake n. a clinker-built boat. --adj. clinker-built. lap-weld v.tr. weld with overlapping edges. --n. such a weld. Etymology: ME, prob. f. LAP(1) 3. v. & n. --v. (lapped, lapping) 1 tr. a (also absol.) (usu. of an animal) drink (liquid) with the tongue. b (usu. foll. by up, down) consume (liquid) greedily. c (usu. foll. by up) consume (gossip, praise, etc.) greedily. 2 a tr. (of water) move or beat upon (a shore) with a rippling sound as of lapping. b intr. (of waves etc.) move in ripples; make a lapping sound. --n. 1 a the process or an act of lapping. b the amount of liquid taken up. 2 the sound of wavelets on a beach. 3 liquid food for dogs. 4 sl. a a weak beverage. b any liquor. Etymology: OE lapian f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lap Lap, n. [OE. lappe, AS. l[ae]ppa; akin to D. lap patch, piece, G. lappen, OHG. lappa, Dan. lap, Sw. lapp.] 1. The loose part of a coat; the lower part of a garment that plays loosely; a skirt; an apron. --Chaucer. 2. An edge; a border; a hem, as of cloth. --Chaucer. If he cuts off but a lap of truth's garment, his heart smites him. --Fuller. 3. The part of the clothing that lies on the knees or thighs when one sits down; that part of the person thus covered; figuratively, a place of rearing and fostering; as, to be reared in the lap of luxury. Men expect that happiness should drop into their laps. --Tillotson. 4. That part of any substance or fixture which extends over, or lies upon, or by the side of, a part of another; as, the lap of a board; also, the measure of such extension over or upon another thing. Note: The lap of shingles or slates in roofing is the distance one course extends over the second course below, the distance over the course immediately below being called the cover. 5. (Steam Engine) The amount by which a slide valve at its half stroke overlaps a port in the seat, being equal to the distance the valve must move from its mid stroke position in order to begin to open the port. Used alone, lap refers to outside lap. See Outside lap (below). 6. The state or condition of being in part extended over or by the side of something else; or the extent of the overlapping; as, the second boat got a lap of half its length on the leader. 7. One circuit around a race track, esp. when the distance is a small fraction of a mile; as, to run twenty laps; to win by three laps. See Lap, to fold, 2. 8. In card playing and other games, the points won in excess of the number necessary to complete a game; -- so called when they are counted in the score of the following game. 9. (Cotton Manuf.) A sheet, layer, or bat, of cotton fiber prepared for the carding machine. 10. (Mach.) A piece of brass, lead, or other soft metal, used to hold a cutting or polishing powder in cutting glass, gems, and the like, or in polishing cutlery, etc. It is usually in the form of wheel or disk, which revolves on a vertical axis. Lap joint, a joint made by one layer, part, or piece, overlapping another, as in the scarfing of timbers. Lap weld, a lap joint made by welding together overlapping edges or ends. Inside lap (Steam Engine), lap of the valve with respect to the exhaust port. Outside lap, lap with respect to the admission, or steam, port.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lap Lap, v. t. To take into the mouth with the tongue; to lick up with a quick motion of the tongue. They 'II take suggestion as a cat laps milk. --Shak.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lap Lap, n. 1. The act of lapping with, or as with, the tongue; as, to take anything into the mouth with a lap. 2. The sound of lapping.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lap Lap, v. i. To be turned or folded; to lie partly upon or by the side of something, or of one another; as, the cloth laps back; the boats lap; the edges lap. The upper wings are opacous; at their hinder ends, where they lap over, transparent, like the wing of a flay. --Grew.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lap Lap, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lapped; p. pr. & vb. n. Lapping.] 1. To rest or recline in a lap, or as in a lap. To lap his head on lady's breast. --Praed. 2. To cut or polish with a lap, as glass, gems, cutlery, etc. See 1st Lap, 10.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lap Lap, v. i. [OE. lappen, lapen, AS. lapian; akin to LG. lappen, OHG. laffan, Icel. lepja, Dan. lade, Sw. l["a]ppja, L. lambere; cf. Gr. ?, W. llepio. Cf. Lambent.] 1. To take up drink or food with the tongue; to drink or feed by licking up something. The dogs by the River Nilus's side, being thirsty, lap hastily as they run along the shore. --Sir K. Digby. 2. To make a sound like that produced by taking up drink with the tongue. I heard the ripple washing in the reeds, And the wild water lapping on the crag. --Tennyson.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lap Lap, v. t. [OE. lappen to fold (see Lap, n.); cf. also OE. wlappen, perh. another form of wrappen, E, wrap.] 1. To fold; to bend and lay over or on something; as, to lap a piece of cloth. 2. To wrap or wind around something. About the paper . . . I lapped several times a slender thread of very black silk. --Sir I. Newton. 3. To infold; to hold as in one's lap; to cherish. Her garment spreads, and laps him in the folds. --Dryden. 4. To lay or place over anything so as to partly or wholly cover it; as, to lap one shingle over another; to lay together one partly over another; as, to lap weather-boards; also, to be partly over, or by the side of (something); as, the hinder boat lapped the foremost one. 5. (Carding & Spinning) To lay together one over another, as fleeces or slivers for further working. To lap boards, shingles, etc., to lay one partly over another. To lap timbers, to unite them in such a way as to preserve the same breadth and depth throughout, as by scarfing. --Weale.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

9. (Chem.) A unit of chemical attraction; as, oxygen has two bonds of affinity. It is often represented in graphic formul[ae] by a short line or dash. See Diagram of Benzene nucleus, and Valence. Arbitration bond. See under Arbitration. Bond crediter (Law), a creditor whose debt is secured by a bond. --Blackstone. Bond debt (Law), a debt contracted under the obligation of a bond. --Burrows. Bond (or lap) of a slate, the distance between the top of one slate and the bottom or drip of the second slate above, i. e., the space which is covered with three thicknesses; also, the distance between the nail of the under slate and the lower edge of the upper slate. Bond timber, timber worked into a wall to tie or strengthen it longitudinally. Syn: Chains; fetters; captivity; imprisonment.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(laps, lapping, lapped) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. If you have something on your lap when you are sitting down, it is on top of your legs and near to your body. She waited quietly with her hands in her lap... Hugh glanced at the child on her mother's lap. N-COUNT: poss N 2. In a race, a competitor completes a lap when they have gone round a course once. ...that last lap of the race... On lap two, Baker edged forward. N-COUNT: usu ord/adj N, N num 3. In a race, if you lap another competitor, you go past them while they are still on the previous lap. He was caught out while lapping a slower rider. VERB: V n 4. A lap of a long journey is one part of it, between two points where you stop. I had thought we might travel as far as Oak Valley, but we only managed the first lap of the journey. = leg N-COUNT: N of n, ord/adj N 5. When water laps against something such as the shore or the side of a boat, it touches it gently and makes a soft sound. (WRITTEN) ...the water that lapped against the pillars of the boathouse... The building was right on the river and the water lapped the walls. VERB: V prep/adv, V n • lapping The only sound was the lapping of the waves. N-UNCOUNT: the N of n 6. When an animal laps a drink, it uses short quick movements of its tongue to take liquid up into its mouth. The cat lapped milk from a dish. VERB: V n • Lap up means the same as lap. She poured some water into a plastic bowl. Faust, her Great Dane, lapped it up with relish. PHRASAL VERB: V n P 7. If you say that a situation is in the lap of the gods, you mean that its success or failure depends entirely on luck or on things that are outside your control. They had to stop the operation, so at that stage my life was in the lap of the gods. PHRASE: v-link PHR

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

The word is the translation of three different Hebrew expressions: cheq (Pr 16:33), beghedh (2Ki 4:39), and chotsen (Ne 5:13, besides chatsen, Ps 129:7). In all these passages the meaning is that of a part of oriental clothing, probably the folds of the garment covering the bosom or lap of a person. The flowing garments of Orientals invite the use of the same, on the part of speakers, in driving home certain truths enunciated by impressive gesticulation. Every reader of Roman history recalls the impressive incident of Quintus Fabius Maximus (Cunctator), who, in 219 BC, was ambassador of Rome to Carthage, and who, before the city council, holding the folds of his toga in the shape of a closed pouch, declared that he held enclosed in the same both peace and war, whichever the Carthaginians should desire to choose. When the Carthaginians clamored for war, he opened the folds of his garment and said: "Then you shall have war!" Very much like it, Nehemiah, when pleading for united efforts for the improvement of social order, addressed the priests of Jerusalem to get a pledge of their cooperation: "Also I shook out my lap (chotsen), and said, So God shake out every man from his house, and from his labor, that performeth not this promise; even thus be he shaken out, and emptied" (Ne 5:13).

In English Versions of the Bible the verb "to lap" is found, which has no etymological connection with the above-mentioned nouns. It is in Hebrew laqaq and refers to the loud licking up of water by dogs (1Ki 21:19; 22:38 the King James Version), and in the story of Gideon's battle against the Midianites, of his 300 warriors (Jud 7:5 ).

H. L. E. Luering

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. 1. Fold, turn over, lay over. 2. Wrap, cover, twist round. 3. Lick, lick up, take up with the tongue. II. v. n. Be folded over, be laid over, reach over.

1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue

Butter-milk or whey. Cant.

Moby Thesaurus

Le Mans, adjoin, air race, ambit, anteriority, apparel, applique, arch over, array, attire, automobile race, babble, be the bellwether, beacon, beat, bedeck, bedrape, befringe, bestraddle, bestride, beverage, bib, bicycle race, bind, boat race, bold front, border, bound, box, brave face, brave front, breath, bridge, brush, bubble, bumper, bundle, bundle up, burble, caress, case, catch up with, circle, circuit, circuiteer, circulate, circumambulate, circummigrate, circumnavigate, circumvent, close, close the circle, clothe, coat, coating, collop, come full circle, come up to, come up with, compass, compass about, contact, contest of speed, covering, cuddle, cut, cutaneous sense, cycle, dash, deal, deck, derby, describe a circle, dight, disk, display, dog race, draft, drag race, drain the cup, dram, drape, drench, dress, drink, drink bottoms-up, drink deep, drink hard, drink off, drink up, dud, edge, embay, embosom, embox, embrace, encapsulate, encase, encircle, enclasp, enclose, enclothe, encompass, endue, endurance race, enfold, enframe, enrobe, enshroud, envelop, environ, enwrap, extend over, facade, face, facet, facia, feel, feeling, feuille, film, fingertip caress, flank, flap, flick, fly, foil, fold, follow strong drink, footrace, fore, forefront, foreground, forehand, foreland, forepart, forequarter, foreside, foreword, frame, fringe, front, front elevation, front man, front matter, front page, front view, frontage, frontal, frontier, frontispiece, full circle, gain on, gain upon, garb, gargle, garment, get ahead of, get before, girdle, girdle the globe, glance, go about, go around, go before, go round, go the round, graze, grog, guggle, guide, gulp, gurgle, guzzle, gyre, habilitate, hand-mindedness, hang over, have the start, head, head the line, heading, heat, hem, hurdle race, imbibe, imbricate, imbrication, invest, involve, jut, kiss, knock back, lambency, lamella, lamina, laminated glass, laminated wood, lap over, lap up, lapping, lave, lead, lead the dance, lead the way, leaf, leave behind, leave standing, libation, lick, lie over, light the way, light touch, line, lip, list, loop, make a circuit, marathon, marathon race, march, marge, margin, marginate, match race, membrane, motorcycle race, mouth, muffle up, nestle, nip, nuzzle, obstacle race, obverse, orbit, outpace, outrun, outsail, outstrip, overarch, overhang, overhaul, overlap, overlapping, overlay, overlayer, overlie, override, overtake, pace, pack, package, pane, panel, pass, patina, peel, peg, pellicle, plait, plank, plash, plate, plating, ply, plywood, portion, potation, potato race, precede, preface, prefix, priority, proscenium, pull, purfle, purl, quaff, race, rag out, raiment, rasher, regatta, relay, relay race, revolution, revolve, ride, rim, ripple, road race, robe, round, round trip, rounds, rub, run, sack race, safety glass, scum, sense of touch, set off, set the pace, sheathe, sheet, shingle, shroud, side, sip, skin, skirt, slab, slat, slice, slosh, slurp, smother, snort, snuggle, soak, soak up, span, spearhead, speedway race, spiral, splash, sponge up, sprint, sprint race, stand first, stock-car race, stroke, suck, sup, surround, swaddle, swash, swathe, swig, swill, swish, table, tablet, tactile sense, taction, take the lead, tap, tentative poke, three-legged race, tipple, tire, tongue, tope, torch race, toss down, toss off, tot, touch, tour, track race, trill, trim, turn, veneer, verge, wafer, walk, wash, washing, wheel, whisper, window dressing, wrap, wrap about, wrap up, yacht race