tap

tap

synonyms, antonyms, definitions, examples & translations of tap in English

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

English

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA(key): /tæp/, [tʰæp]
  • (South Wales) IPA(key): /tɐːp/
  • Rhymes: -æp

Etymology 1

The noun is derived from Middle English tappe (“hollow device for controlling the flow of liquid from a hole, cock, faucet, spigot; hole through which the liquid flows; the liquid which thus flows”), from Old English tæppa, from Proto-West Germanic *tappō, from Proto-Germanic *tappô (“a plug, tap; peg; tapering stick”), from Proto-Indo-European *deh₂p- (“to lose; to sacrifice”).

The verb is derived from Middle English tappen (“to obtain (liquid, chiefly liquor) from a tap; to obtain and sell (liquor)”), from Old English tæppian (“to provide (a container) with a stopper; to obtain (liquid) from a tap”), and then either:

  • from Old English tæppa (see above) + -ian (suffix forming verbs); or
  • from Proto-Germanic *tappōną, from *tappô (noun) (see above).

Verb sense 1.3.5 (“to turn over (a playing card or playing piece) to remind players that it has already been used in that round”) alludes to the abilities or resources of the card or piece having been drawn on to the point of temporary exhaustion: see verb sense 1.3.2.

Noun

tap (plural taps)

  2. A conical peg or pin used to close and open the hole or vent in a container.
    Synonyms: spigot, spile
  3. (by extension)
    1. An object with a tapering conical form like a tap (sense 1); specifically, short for taproot (“long, tapering root of a plant”).
    3. A hollow device used to control the flow of a fluid, such as an alcoholic beverage from a cask, or a gas or liquid in a pipe.
      Synonyms: cock, faucet, handle, spigot, spout, stopcock
      1. (medicine, informal) A procedure that removes fluid from a body cavity; paracentesis.
    4. Liquor drawn through a tap (sense 2.2); hence, a certain kind or quality of liquor; also (figurative, informal), a certain kind or quality of any thing.
    5. (communication, chiefly law enforcement)
      1. A device used to listen in secretly on telephone calls or other communications. [from 20th c.]
      2. A secret interception of telephone calls or other communications using such a device; also, a recording of such a communication.
    6. (finance) A situation where a borrowing government authority issues bonds over a period of time, usually at a fixed price, with volumes sold on a particular day dependent on market conditions.
    8. (mechanics) A cylindrical tool used to cut an internal screw thread in a hole, with cutting edges around the lower end and an upper end to which a handle is fitted to turn the tool.
    9. (British) Short for taphouse or taproom (“place where alcoholic beverages are served on tap”).
      Synonyms: bar, barroom
    10. (British, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering) A connection made to an electrical or fluid conductor without breaking it; a tapping.
Derived terms
Related terms
  • tapster
Translations

Verb

tap (third-person singular simple present taps, present participle tapping, simple past and past participle tapped)

  1. (transitive)
    1. To furnish (a container, etc.) with a tap (noun sense 2.2) so that liquid can be drawn.
    2. To draw off (a liquid) from a container or other source; also, to draw off a liquid from (a container or other source).
      1. (medicine, informal) To drain off fluid from (a person or a body cavity) by paracentesis.
    3. (figurative)
      1. To break into or open up (a thing) so as to obtain something; to exploit, to penetrate.
      3. To deplete (something); to tap out.
      4. (informal) To ask or beg for (something) to be given for free; to cadge, to scrounge; also, to ask or beg (someone) to give something for free.
        Synonyms: see Thesaurus:scrounge
      5. (communication, chiefly law enforcement) To connect a listening and/or recording device to (a communication cable or device) in order to listen in secretly on telephone calls or other communications; also, to secretly listen in on and/or record (a telephone call or other communication). [from 19th c.]
        Synonym: eavesdrop
      7. (board games, card games) To turn over (a playing card or playing piece) to remind players that it has already been used in that round.
      8. (poker) To force (an opponent) to place all their poker chips in the pot (that is, to go all in) by wagering all of one's own chips.
    4. (horticulture) To remove a taproot from (a plant).
    5. (mechanics)
      1. To cut an internal screw thread in (a hole); also, to cut (an internal screw thread) in a hole, or to create an internally threaded hole in (something).
      2. To cut an external screw thread into (a bolt or rod) to create a screw.
      3. To put (a screw or other object) in or through another thing.
  2. (intransitive)
    1. To act as a tapster; to draw an alcoholic beverage from a container.
    2. (obsolete) To spend money, etc., freely.
Conjugation
Derived terms
Translations

Etymology 2

The verb is derived from Middle English tappen, teppen (“to give (something) a knock or tap; to hit (something) lightly, pat, tap”), either:

  • imitative of the making of a tapping sound; or
  • from Old French tapper, taper (“to tap”) (modern French taper), from Frankish *tappōn, *dabbōn (“to strike”), or from Middle Low German tappen, tapen (“to rap, strike, tap”), both ultimately from Proto-Germanic *dab- (“to strike”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰebʰ- (“to beat, strike; to stun; to be speechless”). Doublet of dab.

Verb sense 1.1.1 (“to arrest (someone)”) and sense 1.6 (“to choose or designate (someone) for a duty, etc.”) allude to a police officer or other person tapping someone on their shoulder to catch their attention or to select them.

The noun is derived from Middle English tap, tappe (“light blow or hit”), and then either:

  • from Middle English tappen (verb) (see above); or
  • from Old French tape (“light slap or touch, pat”) (modern French tape), from tapper, taper (verb) (see above).

Verb

tap (third-person singular simple present taps, present participle tapping, simple past and past participle tapped)

  1. (transitive)
    1. To strike (someone or something), chiefly lightly with a clear sound, but sometimes hard. [from early 13th c.]
      2. (slang) Also in the form tap on the shoulder: to arrest (someone).
      3. (slang, vulgar) To have sexual intercourse with (someone).
        Synonyms: hit, wap; see also Thesaurus:copulate with
      4. (slang) To shoot (someone or something) with a firearm.
    2. To (lightly) touch (a finger, foot, or other body part) on a surface, often repeatedly.
      Synonyms: hit, patter, pound, rap, strike; see also Thesaurus:hit
      1. (transitive) To lightly touch a touchscreen, usually an icon or button, to activate a function.
        Next, tap on the browser to get on the internet.
      2. (transitive) To lightly and repeatedly touch (a person or one or more body parts) as part of various forms of psychological treatment.
        The therapist tapped him when he was overcome by anxiety.
    3. (combat sports) To force (an opponent) to submit, chiefly by indicating their intention to do so by striking a hand on the ground several times; to tap out.
    4. (graphical user interface) To invoke a function on an electronic device such as a mobile phone by touching (a button, icon, or specific location on its touch screen).
      Coordinate terms: swipe, click
    5. (British, dialectal or US) To repair (an item of footwear) by putting on a new heel or sole, or a piece of material on to the heel or sole.
    7. (chiefly US, informal) To choose or designate (someone) for a duty, an honour, membership of an organization, or a position. [from mid 20th c.]
  2. (intransitive)
    1. Often followed by at or on: to strike lightly with a clear sound; also, to make a sharp noise through this action.
      Synonyms: bang, hit, ping, rap
    2. To walk by striking the ground lightly with a clear sound.
    3. Of a bell, a drum, etc.: to make a sharp noise, often as a signal.
    4. (combat sports) To submit to an opponent, chiefly by indicating an intention to do so by striking a hand on the ground several times; to tap out.
    5. (obsolete) Of a hare or rabbit: to strike the ground repeatedly with its feet during the rutting season.
Conjugation
Derived terms
Translations

Noun

tap (countable and uncountable, plural taps)

  1. (countable)
    1. A light blow or strike with a clear sound; a gentle rap; a pat; also, the sound made by such a blow or strike.
    2. (informal, minimizer, chiefly in the negative) The smallest amount of work; a stroke of work.
    3. (dance) One of the metal pieces attached to the sole of a tap dancer's shoe at the toe and heel to cause a tapping sound.
    4. (firearms, slang) A shot fired from a firearm.
    5. (graphical user interface) An act of touching a button, icon, or specific location on the touch screen of an electronic device such as a mobile phone to invoke a function.
      Coordinate term: click
    6. (phonetics) A single muscle contraction in vocal organs causing a consonant sound; also, the sound so made.
      Synonym: flap
    7. (British, dialectal or US) A piece of leather or other material fastened upon the bottom of an item of footwear when repairing the heel or sole; also (England, dialectal) the sole of an item of footwear.
      Synonym: heeltap
  2. (uncountable, dance) Ellipsis of tap dance.
Derived terms
Translations

Etymology 3

From Persian or Urdu تب (tab, “malarial fever”), ultimately from Sanskrit ताप (tāpa, “fever; heat; pain, torment”).

Noun

tap (uncountable)

  1. (India, chiefly East India) A malarial fever.
Derived terms
Translations

References

Further reading

  • tap (valve) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
  • tap (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
  • [Francis Grose] (1788) “Tap”, in A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, 2nd edition, London: […] S. Hooper, […], →OCLC: “Tap. A gentle blow. A tap on the ſhoulder; an arreſt. To tap a girl; to be the firſt ſeducer. To tap a guinea; to get it changed.”
  • “tap n.1”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang, Jonathon Green, 2016–present
  • “tap v.2”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang, Jonathon Green, 2016–present

Anagrams

  • tPA, Apt, APT, pat, atp, pta., PTA, apt., ap't, TPA, apt, PAT, ATP, Pat

Albanian

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Noun

tap

  1. struck, hit

Catalan

Pronunciation

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

Noun

tap m (plural taps)

  1. tap, spigot, plug
  2. (castells) a casteller inserted into an empty space in a pinya to make it more compact

Derived terms

  • ésser un tap de barral

Danish

Etymology 1

From Old Danish tapp, from Old Norse tappi, from Proto-Germanic *tappô.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈtap/, [ˈtˢɑb̥]

Noun

tap c (singular definite tappen, plural indefinite tappe or tapper)

  1. (mechanics) protruding component of a device
  2. (anatomy) cone cell
  3. (informal) penis
  4. (erotic literature) clitoris
    • 2014, 2016, Christian Møgeltoft, Uskyld, Lindhardt og Ringhof (→ISBN)
Inflection

Etymology 2

Acronym of teknisk-administrativt personale.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈtap/, [ˈtˢɑb̥]

Noun

tap c (singular definite tap'en, plural indefinite tap'er)

  1. member of technical and administrative staff
Inflection

Etymology 3

Verb

tap

  1. imperative of tappe

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch tappe (“closing pin, stopper”), from Old Dutch *tappo, from Proto-West Germanic *tappō, from Proto-Germanic *tappô.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tɑp/
  • Hyphenation: tap
  • Rhymes: -ɑp

Noun

tap m (plural tappen, diminutive tapje n)

  1. tap

Usage notes

Although this term can be used to mean a tap from which water flows, this usage is rare; the more common term is kraan. It is most commonly used to refer to a beer tap.

Synonyms

  • kraan

Derived terms

  • biertap
  • flappentap
  • tapbier
  • tappen

Descendants

  • Afrikaans: tap

Icelandic

Etymology

From tapa (“to lose”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tʰaːp/
  • Rhymes: -aːp

Noun

tap n (genitive singular taps, nominative plural töp)

  1. loss, damage

Declension

Related terms

  • tapa

K'iche'

Noun

tap

  1. (Classical K'iche') crab

Lashi

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tap/

Verb

tap

  1. to make something burn
  2. to make something stick

References

  • Hkaw Luk (2017) A grammatical sketch of Lacid‎[21], Chiang Mai: Payap University (master thesis)

Malecite-Passamaquoddy

Etymology

Cognate with Penobscot ttὰpi, Mi'kmaq tapi, Abenaki tôbi.

Noun

tap anim (plural tapiyik/tapihik, possessed 'tahtapiyil/'tahtapimol/'tapiyil, locative tapik/tapiyik, diminutive tapossis)

  1. bow

Middle English

Verb

tap

  1. Alternative form of tappen (“to touch gently”)

Norwegian Bokmål

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tɑːp/

Noun

tap n (definite singular tapet, indefinite plural tap, definite plural tapa or tapene)

  1. (a) loss

Derived terms

Related terms

  • tape (Etymology 2)

References

  • “tap” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tɑːp/

Noun

tap n (definite singular tapet, indefinite plural tap, definite plural tapa)

  1. (a) loss, defeat

Derived terms

References

  • “tap” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old Javanese

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tap/
  • Rhymes: -tap
  • Hyphenation: tap

Etymology 1

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

Noun

tap

  1. proper arrangement
  2. right order
Derived terms

Etymology 2

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

Adjective

tap

  1. sudden, swift
Derived terms

Phalura

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tap/

Adverb

tap (Perso-Arabic spelling تپ)

  1. Co-lexicalized intensifier

References

  • Henrik Liljegren, Naseem Haider (2011) “tap”, in Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7)‎[22], Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN

Semai

Etymology

From Proto-Mon-Khmer. Cognate with Pacoh tâp (“to bury”), Riang [Lang] tap² ("to dam"), Mal tʰap ("to bury"), Mon တိုပ် (“to bury”), Vietnamese đắp (“to cover something with a layer”).

Verb

tap

  1. to bury

Synonyms

  • (to bury): choop
  • (to plant): chet

References

Spanish

Noun

tap m (uncountable)

  1. tap, tap dancing

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