| / English Dictionary |
LAP
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
Irregular inflected forms: lapped , lapping
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Touching with the tongue
Example:
the dog's laps were warm and wet
Synonyms:
lap; lick
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("lap" is a kind of...):
touch; touching (the act of putting two things together with no space between them)
Derivation:
lap (take up with the tongue)
lap (pass the tongue over)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Movement once around a course
Example:
he drove an extra lap just for insurance
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting acts or actions
Hypernyms ("lap" is a kind of...):
locomotion; travel (self-propelled movement)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "lap"):
pace lap (the first lap of a car race that prepares the cars for a fast start)
lap of honour; victory lap (a lap by the winning person or team run to celebrate the victory)
Sense 3
Meaning:
A flap that lies over another part
Example:
the lap of the shingles should be at least ten inches
Synonyms:
lap; overlap
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("lap" is a kind of...):
flap (any broad thin and limber covering attached at one edge; hangs loose or projects freely)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "lap"):
cuff; turnup (the lap consisting of a turned-back hem encircling the end of the sleeve or leg)
lapel (lap at the front of a coat; continuation of the coat collar)
lappet (a small lap on a garment or headdress)
Derivation:
lap (lie partly over or alongside of something or of one another)
Sense 4
Meaning:
The part of a piece of clothing that covers the thighs
Example:
his lap was covered with food stains
Synonyms:
lap; lap covering
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("lap" is a kind of...):
cloth covering (a covering made of cloth)
Holonyms ("lap" is a part of...):
skirt (cloth covering that forms the part of a garment below the waist)
pair of trousers; pant; trousers ((usually in the plural) a garment extending from the waist to the knee or ankle, covering each leg separately)
Sense 5
Meaning:
The upper side of the thighs of a seated person
Example:
he picked up the little girl and plopped her down in his lap
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("lap" is a kind of...):
thigh (the part of the leg between the hip and the knee)
Sense 6
Meaning:
An area of control or responsibility
Example:
the job fell right in my lap
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("lap" is a kind of...):
area; arena; domain; field; orbit; sphere (a particular environment or walk of life)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "lap"):
lap of the gods (beyond human control or responsibility)
II. (verb)
Verb forms
Present simple: I / you / we / they lap ... he / she / it laps
Past simple: lapped
Past participle: lapped
-ing form: lapping
Sense 1
Meaning:
Wash or flow against
Example:
the waves laved the shore
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Hypernyms (to "lap" is one way to...):
flow (cover or swamp with water)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s something
Sense 2
Meaning:
Take up with the tongue
Example:
the cub licked the milk from its mother's breast
Synonyms:
lap; lap up; lick
Classified under:
Hypernyms (to "lap" is one way to...):
drink; imbibe (take in liquids)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s something
Derivation:
lap (touching with the tongue)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Pass the tongue over
Example:
the dog licked her hand
Synonyms:
lap; lick
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Hypernyms (to "lap" is one way to...):
stroke (touch lightly and repeatedly, as with brushing motions)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "lap"):
tongue (lick or explore with the tongue)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Derivation:
lap (touching with the tongue)
Sense 4
Meaning:
Move with or cause to move with a whistling or hissing sound
Example:
The curtain swooshed open
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling
Hypernyms (to "lap" is one way to...):
go; sound (make a certain noise or sound)
Sentence frames:
Something ----s
Somebody ----s PP
Sense 5
Meaning:
Lie partly over or alongside of something or of one another
Classified under:
Verbs of being, having, spatial relations
Hypernyms (to "lap" is one way to...):
lie (be located or situated somewhere; occupy a certain position)
Sentence frame:
Something is ----ing PP
Derivation:
lap (a flap that lies over another part)
Context examples:
Later in the afternoon they strayed off among the trees, where, in the good old fashion, she sat down while he sprawled on his back, his head in her lap.
(Martin Eden, by Jack London)
She carried me on her lap, in a box tied about her waist.
(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)
The letter was one moment in her hand, then in her lap, and then in her pocket; and she looked as if she knew not what she did.
(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)
In a day or two I hope to pour them into your lap: for every privilege, every attention shall be yours that I would accord a peer's daughter, if about to marry her.
(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)
Your lap seems full of good things, and here is a basket of something between us which has been knocking my elbow unmercifully.
(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)
A worked antimacassar lay upon her lap and a basket of coloured silks stood upon a stool beside her.
(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
He went over to her and snuggled his head in her lap, nudging her arm with his nose—an old trick of his when begging for favors.
(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)
For an immeasurable period, lapped in the rippling of placid centuries, I enjoyed and pondered my tremendous flight.
(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)
Beta-lapachone (b-lap) is bioactivated by NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase-1 (NQO1), creating a futile oxidoreduction that generates high levels of superoxide.
(Lapachone, NCI Thesaurus)
He shot a mischievous glance at my mother as he spoke, and she laid down her knitting on her lap and looked very earnestly at him.
(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
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