soap

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

English

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /soʊp/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /səʊp/
• Rhymes: -əʊp

Etymology 1

From Middle English sope, sape, from Old English sāpe (“soap, salve”), from Proto-West Germanic *saipā, from Proto-Germanic *saipǭ, from Proto-Indo-European *seyb-, *seyp- (“to pour out, drip, trickle, strain”).

Cognate with Scots saip, sape (“soap”), Saterland Frisian Seepe (“soap”), West Frisian sjippe (“soap”), Dutch zeep (“soap”), German Low German Seep (“soap”), German Seife (“soap”), Danish sæbe (“soap”), Swedish såpa (“soap”), Norwegian Bokmål såpe (“soap”), Norwegian Nynorsk såpe (“soap”), Faroese sápa (“soap”), Icelandic sápa (“soap”), Finnish saippua (“soap”), Finnish suopa (“soft soap”). Related also to Old English sāp (“amber, resin, pomade, unguent”), Latin sēbum (“tallow, fat, grease”). See seep. Latin sāpō (“soap”) is a borrowing from the Germanic.

Noun

soap (countable and uncountable, plural soaps)

1. (chemistry) A metallic salt derived from a fatty acid, commonly used in cleaning products.
2. (countable, uncountable, informal, by extension, mineralogy) Some other substance, often a detergent or another surfactant, able to mix with both oil and water, used for cleaning.

3. (slang) Money, specially when used as a bribe.
4. (countable, informal) A soap opera.
5. (countable) A solid masonry unit or brick reduced in depth or height from standard dimensions.

Alternative forms

• sope (obsolete)

Derived terms

Descendants

Translations

See also

• body wash
• shampoo
• shower gel
• wash-ball

References

• The Free Dictionary definitions from various other dictionaries
• Soaping Masonry

Verb

soap (third-person singular simple present soaps, present participle soaping, simple past and past participle soaped)

1. (transitive) To apply soap to in washing.

2. (transitive, informal) To cover, lather, or in any other manner treat with soap, often as a prank.

3. (transitive, informal) To be discreet about (a topic).

   Synonyms: soft-soap, soft-pedal, sugar soap, downplay

4. (slang, dated) To flatter; to wheedle.

Derived terms

Translations

Related terms

• soaper
• saponification

See also

• soap on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Etymology 2

Probably an abbreviation of sodium pentothal.

Noun

soap (uncountable)

1. (slang) thiopental (sodium pentothal)

Anagrams

• AOPs, AOSP, OAPs, OSAP, PAOs, Paos, Paso, SOPA, Sapo, poas, sapo-

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English soap. Doublet of zeep.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /soːp/
• Hyphenation: soap
• Rhymes: -oːp

Noun

soap f (plural soaps, diminutive soapje n)

1. soap opera

Anagrams

• opa's

French

Etymology

Borrowed from English soap.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sop/

Noun

soap m (plural soaps)

1. soap opera

Anagrams

• posa