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tapas

American  
[tuhp-uhs] / ˈtʌp əs /

noun

Yoga.
  1. the conditioning of the body through the proper kinds and amounts of diet, rest, bodily training, meditation, etc., to bring it to the greatest possible state of creative power.


tapas British  
/ ˈtæpəs /

plural noun

    1. light snacks or appetizers, usually eaten with drinks

    2. ( as modifier )

      a tapas bar

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of tapas

First recorded in 1930–35; from Sanskrit: “penance,” literally, “heat”; akin to Latin tepēre “to be lukewarm” ( see tepid ( def. ))


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

“There’s unlimited tapas, they have cold bar, hot bar, to-go items. It’s José Andrés,” she said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

Three-year-old Madeleine vanished from her family's holiday apartment in Portugal's Praia da Luz in May 2007 while her parents dined at a nearby tapas bar.

From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2025

I am a master of sitting in a hotel room and finishing some not-even-that-time-sensitive work when I should be out at a tapas bar on a nominal vacation.

From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2025

There are plenty of cozy spaces to hide away at this Moorish-style hotel, with stunning casbah-inspired alcoves in the lobby, a library with a fireplace, and Spanish tapas and more at the wine bar Más.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2024

This is the Mission District, a gentrified hotbed of sushi, tapas, hip Mexican restaurants, and upscale furniture stores.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

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