sap

English Online Dictionary. What means sap‎? What does sap mean?

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sæp/
• Rhymes: -æp

Etymology 1

From Middle English sap, from Old English sæp (“juice, sap”), from Proto-West Germanic *sap (“sap, juice”) (compare Dutch sap, German Saft, Icelandic safi), from Proto-Indo-European *sab-, *sap- (“to taste”) (compare Welsh syb-wydd (“fir”), Latin sapa (“must, new wine”), Russian со́пли (sópli, “snivel”), Old Armenian համ (ham, “taste”), Avestan 𐬬𐬌-𐬱𐬁𐬞𐬀 (vi-šāpa, “having poisonous juices”), Sanskrit सबर् (sabar, “juice, nectar”)). More at sage.

The longstanding practice of sapping trees influenced the sense evolution of the military term as trench warfare receded from public conscience.

Noun

sap (countable and uncountable, plural saps)

1. (uncountable) The juice of plants of any kind, especially the ascending and descending juices or circulating fluid essential to nutrition.
2. (uncountable) The sapwood, or alburnum, of a tree.
3. Any juice.
4. (figurative) Vitality.
5. (slang, countable) A naive person; a simpleton.

   Synonyms: milksop, saphead

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

sap (third-person singular simple present saps, present participle sapping, simple past and past participle sapped)

1. (transitive) To drain, suck or absorb from (a tree, etc.).
2. (transitive, figurative) To exhaust the vitality of.

Etymology 2

Probably from sapling.

Noun

sap (plural saps)

1. (countable, US, slang) A short wooden club; a leather-covered hand weapon; a blackjack.
   • 1944, William Faulkner, Leigh Brackett, Jules Furthman, The Big Sleep (screenplay)

     I risk my whole future, the hatred of the cops and Eddie Mars' gang. I dodge bullets and eat saps.

Translations

Verb

sap (third-person singular simple present saps, present participle sapping, simple past and past participle sapped)

1. (transitive, slang) To strike with a sap (with a blackjack).
   • 1944, William Faulkner, Leigh Brackett, Jules Furthman, The Big Sleep (screenplay)

     [A]s he passes the mouth of a narrow alley two men step out quickly. One of them saps Marlowe expertly — they drag him out of sight.

Translations

Etymology 3

From French saper (compare Spanish zapar and Italian zappare) from sape (“sort of scythe”), from Late Latin sappa (“sort of mattock”).

Noun

sap (plural saps)

1. (military) A narrow ditch or trench made from the foremost parallel toward the glacis or covert way of a besieged place by digging under cover of gabions, etc.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

sap (third-person singular simple present saps, present participle sapping, simple past and past participle sapped)

1. (transitive) To subvert by digging or wearing away; to mine; to undermine; to destroy the foundation of.
2. (transitive, military) To pierce with saps.
3. (transitive) To make unstable or infirm; to unsettle; to weaken.
4. (transitive) To gradually weaken.

5. (intransitive) To proceed by mining, or by secretly undermining; to execute saps.

Translations

Anagrams

• SPA, APS, PAS, Spa, APs, PsA, spa, asp, pas, Pas, PSA, ASP, SpA, PAs, Psa.

Aromanian

Alternative forms

• sapu, tsap, tsapu

Etymology

From Vulgar Latin *sappō, from Latin sappa. Compare Romanian săpa, sap, French saper, Italian zappare, Sicilian zappari, Spanish zapar, Friulian sapâ, Venetan sapar, Latin sappa.

Verb

sap first-singular present indicative (past participle sãpatã)

1. to dig (with a pick)

Related terms

See also

• tãrchescu
• arãm

Azerbaijani

Etymology 1

From Proto-Turkic *sạp-.

Noun

sap (definite accusative sapı, plural saplar)

1. thread

   Synonym: ip

Declension

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

sap (definite accusative sapı, plural saplar)

1. grip, hilt

Declension

Further reading

• “sap” in Obastan.com.

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic, Valencia) [ˈsap]
• Rhymes: -ap

Etymology 1

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Alternative forms

• sab (obsolete)

Etymology 2

Back-formation from cepell.

Noun

sap m (plural saps)

1. common heather

   Synonyms: bruguerola, bronsa

Etymology 3

Verb

sap

1. third-person singular present indicative of saber

Further reading

• “sap” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch sap, from Old Dutch *sap, from Proto-West Germanic *sap.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɑp/
• Hyphenation: sap
• Rhymes: -ɑp

Noun

sap n (plural sappen, diminutive sapje n)

1. juice

   Hyponyms: aalbessensap, appelsap, citroensap, druivensap, sinaasappelsap, vruchtensap

2. sap (fluid in plants)

Derived terms

Descendants

• Afrikaans: sap
• Negerhollands: sap
• → Indonesian: getah (semantic loan)

References

Anagrams

• pas

Hokkien

Kholosi

Etymology

From Sanskrit सर्प (sarpa).

Noun

sap ?

1. snake

References

• Eric Anonby, Hassan Mohebi Bahmani (2014) “Shipwrecked and Landlocked: Kholosi, an Indo-Aryan Language in South-west Iran”, in Cahier de Studia Iranica xx‎^[3], pages 13-36

Middle English

Alternative forms

• saape, saappe, sape, sapp, sappe, zep
• sæp, sæpp (Early Middle English)

Etymology

From Old English sæp, from Proto-West Germanic *sap, from Proto-Indo-European *sep-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sap/, /saːp/

Noun

sap (uncountable)

1. sap (plant juices)
2. sapwood (wood under bark)
3. (rare) earwax

Derived terms

Descendants

• English: sap
• Scots: sap, saup

References

• “sā̆p(e, n.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *saipu, from Proto-Germanic *saipō (“resin”), from Proto-Indo-European *seyb-, *seyp- (“to pour, sile, flow, drip”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɑːp/

Noun

sāp f

1. amber, resin
2. pomade

Declension

Strong ō-stem:

Related terms

• sāpe
• sīpian

Descendants

• ⇒? Middle English: eresap, eresope (“earwax”)

Polish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsap/
• Rhymes: -ap
• Syllabification: sap

Verb

sap

1. second-person singular imperative of sapać

Romani

Etymology

Inherited from Prakrit 𑀲𑀧𑁆𑀧 (sappa), from Sanskrit सर्प (sarpá). Cognate with Punjabi ਸੱਪ (sappa, “snake”).

Pronunciation

Noun

sap m (plural sapa)

1. snake

References

• Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “sap”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 766
• Yaron Matras (2002) “Historical and linguistic origins”, in Romani: A Linguistic Introduction‎^[4], Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 40
• Yūsuke Sumi (2018) “sap, ~a”, in ニューエクスプレスプラス　ロマ（ジプシー）語 [New Express Plus Romani (Gypsy)] (in Japanese), Tokyo: Hakusuisha, published 2021, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 154

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [sap]

Verb

sap

1. first-person singular present indicative/subjunctive of săpa

Tausug

Alternative forms

• sāp

Etymology

Borrowed from Malay cap.

Pronunciation

• (Sinūgan Parianun) IPA^(key): /sap/ [ˈsap̚]
• Rhymes: -ap
• Syllabification: sap

Noun

sap (Sulat Sūg spelling سَفْ)

1. seal; stamp
2. brand

   Synonym: jinama ( Malaysia)

Derived terms

Turkish

Etymology 1

From Ottoman Turkish صاپ (sap, “handle; stalk; hair”), from Proto-Turkic *sạp (“handle”). Cognate with Old Turkic [script needed] (sap).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɑp/

Adjective

sap

1. (slang) not having a significant other

Declension

Noun

sap (definite accusative sapı, plural saplar)

1. handle
2. stem, stalk
3. (slang) penis
4. (slang) male

Declension

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

sap

1. second-person singular imperative of sapmak

Veps

Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *sappi.

Noun

sap

1. bile, gall

Declension

Volapük

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin sapiō (“I am wise”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɑːp/

Noun

sap

1. wisdom

Zhuang

Pronunciation

• (Standard Zhuang) IPA^(key): /θaːp˧˥/
• Tone numbers: sap⁷
• Hyphenation: sap

Etymology 1

From Proto-Tai *saːpᴰ (“cockroach”). Cognate with Thai สาบ (sàap), Lao ສາບ (sāp), Shan သၢပ်ႇ (sàap), Bouyei saabt.

Noun

sap (Sawndip form 𫊷, 1957–1982 spelling sap)

1. cockroach

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Verb

sap (1957–1982 spelling sap)

1. to wear shoes with the heels stepping down on the back of the shoes