clap

[klap]

verb (used with object), clapped, clap·ping.

to strike the palms of (one's hands) against one another resoundingly, and usually repeatedly, especially to express approval: She clapped her hands in appreciation.

to strike (someone) amicably with a light, open-handed slap, as in greeting, encouragement, or the like: He clapped his friend on the back.

to strike (an object) against something quickly and forcefully, producing an abrupt, sharp sound, or a series of such sounds: to clap a book on the table.

to bring together forcefully (facing surfaces of the same object): She clapped the book shut.

to applaud (a performance, speech, speaker, etc.) by clapping the hands: The audience clapped the actors at the end of the act.

to put or place quickly or forcefully: to clap a lid on a jar; She clapped her hand over his mouth. They clapped him in jail.

to make or arrange hastily (often followed by up or together).

verb (used without object), clapped, clap·ping.

to clap the hands, as to express approval; applaud: After the audience stopped clapping, the tenor sang two encores.

to make an abrupt, sharp sound, as of flat surfaces striking against one another: The shutters clapped in the wind.

to move or strike with such a sound: She clapped across the room in her slippers.

noun

an act or instance of clapping.

the abrupt, sharp sound produced by clapping.

a resounding blow; slap.

a loud and abrupt or explosive noise, as of thunder.

a sudden stroke, blow, or act.

Printing. clapper(def 5).

Obsolete. a sudden mishap.

Idioms

clap eyes on. eye(def 42).

clap hold of, Nautical. to take hold of.

Origin of clap

1175–1225; Middle English clappen, Old English clæppan; cognate with Middle Low German kleppen

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for clapped

cheer, pat, bang, slap, smash, wham, crash, applause, burst, thunder, thwack, thrust, slam, boom, wallop, crack, strike, blast, whack, thunderclap

Examples from the Web for clapped

Contemporary Examples of clapped

Guilavogui clapped his empty hands together and went up to the street to fold the newspaper dispensers up by the subway entrance.
From Ebola Country to NYC’s Subways
Michael Daly
October 25, 2014
We laughed and whooped and clapped and danced and hugged each other.
Visiting the Arctic Circle…Before It’s Irreversibly Changed
Terry Greene Sterling
April 1, 2014
The standing-room-only audience swayed and clapped and danced.
Jon Batiste, a Thrilling Jazz Pianist Whose First Goal Is to Entertain
Howard Wolfson
February 16, 2014
Ringo clapped; Yoko flashed peace signs; Steven Tyler tumbled for ya; Beyoncé shimmied; and Katy Perry threw “Roar” punches.
The Grammys Train Wreck: An Insult to Lou Reed, Hip-Hop, and Good Taste
Marlow Stern
January 27, 2014
After Lendegger walked the award over to her and it was plunked down on the table, the crowd of about 175 stood up and clapped.
Harper Lee Makes a Surprise Appearance at an Alabama Literary Luncheon
Mary McDonagh Murphy
May 3, 2012

Historical Examples of clapped

She clapped her hands at a happy inspiration, and hung on his arm.
Viviette
William J. Locke
He clapped his hands, with that thrill of joy which true art will ever give to a true artist.
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle
As he clapped his legs to the horse's back he stuck his knife into the Potawatami.
The Trail Book
Mary Austin
Lloyd clapped her hands and spun around the room like a top.
The Little Colonel
Annie Fellows Johnston
"That man sized you up the minute he clapped his eyes on you," he said.
The Foolish Lovers
St. John G. Ervine

British Dictionary definitions for clapped

clap

verb claps, clapping or clapped

to make or cause to make a sharp abrupt sound, as of two nonmetallic objects struck together

to applaud (someone or something) by striking the palms of the hands together sharply

(tr) to strike (a person) lightly with an open hand, in greeting, encouragement, etc

(tr) to place or put quickly or forciblythey clapped him into jail

(of certain birds) to flap (the wings) noisily

(tr; foll by up or together) to contrive or put together hastilythey soon clapped up a shed

clap eyes on informal to catch sight of

clap hold of informal to grasp suddenly or forcibly

noun

the sharp abrupt sound produced by striking the hands together

the act of clapping, esp in applausehe deserves a good clap

a sudden sharp sound, esp of thunder

a light blow

archaic a sudden action or mishap

Word Origin for clap

Old English clæppan; related to Old High German klepfen, Middle Dutch klape rattle, Dutch klepel clapper; all of imitative origin

clap

noun

the clap a slang word for gonorrhoea

Word Origin for clap

C16: from Old French clapoir venereal sore, from clapier brothel, from Old Provençal, from clap heap of stones, of obscure origin

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

Word Origin and History for clapped

clap

Old English clæppan "to throb, beat," common West Germanic, echoic (cf. Old Frisian klapa "to beat," Old Norse klappa, Old High German klaphon, German klappen, Old Saxon klapunga). Meaning "to strike or knock" is from c.1300. Meaning "to make a sharp noise" is late 14c. Of hands, to beat them together to get attention or express joy, from late 14c. To clap (someone) on the back is from 1520s. Related: Clapped; clapping.

clap

n.2

"gonorrhea," 1580s, of unknown origin, perhaps from Middle English clapper "rabbit-hole," from Old French clapoire (Modern French clapier), originally "rabbit burrow" (of uncertain origin), but given a slang extension to "brothel" and also the name of a disease of some sort. In English originally also a verb, "to infect with clap." Related: Clap-doctor.

clap

n.1

"loud noise," c.1200, from clap (v.). Of thunder, late 14c. Meaning "sudden blow" is from c.1400; meaning "noise made by slapping the palms of the hands together" is from 1590s.

clapped in Medicine

clap

[klăp]

n.

Gonorrhea. Often used with the.