dap

[ dap ]

/ dæp /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR dap ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), dapped, dap·ping.

to fish by letting the bait fall lightly on the water.

to dip lightly or suddenly into water: The bird dapped for the fish.

to bounce or skip, as on the surface of a body of water: The stone dapped along the surface of the pond.

verb (used with object), dapped, dap·ping.

to cause to dip in and out of water: to dap one's bait.

to cause to skip along the surface of water: to dap stones across the river.

Carpentry. to notch (a timber) to receive part of another timber.

noun

Carpentry. a notch in a timber for receiving part of another timber.

RELATED WORDS

skim, skip

Nearby words

danvers, danville, danzi, danzig, daoism, dap, daphne, daphnephoria, daphnia, daphnis, daphnis and chloe

Origin of dap

First recorded in 1575–85; probably variant of dab¹

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

Examples from the Web for dap

The owners of DAP Racing, Perry Martin and Steve Coburn, were not typical horse people.
Why California Chrome’s Fairy Tale Didn’t End Happily Ever After|Michael Fensom|June 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
DAP bred their horses at Harris Farm, in Coalinga, Calif., another peculiar decision.
Why California Chrome’s Fairy Tale Didn’t End Happily Ever After|Michael Fensom|June 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Coburn, the more outgoing of the two, is the face of DAP but by trade is a machinist from Nevada.
Why California Chrome’s Fairy Tale Didn’t End Happily Ever After|Michael Fensom|June 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The show wrapped up with two songs from local favorites Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings.
Jimmy Kimmel Boosts Brooklyn, Taping Show a Day After Sandy|Eliza Shapiro|October 31, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Dap s. the hop, or turn of a ball; also habits and peculiarities of a person, ex.
A Glossary of Provincial Words & Phrases in use in Somersetshire|Wadham Pigott Williams

British Dictionary definitions for dap (1 of 3)

dap

/ (dæp) /

verb daps, dapping or dapped

angling to fish with a natural or artificial fly on a floss silk line so that the wind makes the fly bob on and off the surface of the water

(intr) (as of a bird) to dip lightly into water

to bounce or cause to bounce

Word Origin for dap

C17: of imitative origin

British Dictionary definitions for dap (2 of 3)

dap

/ (dæp) /

noun

Southwest English dialect another word for plimsoll

Word Origin for dap

C20: probably special use of dap 1 (in the sense: to bounce, skip)

British Dictionary definitions for dap (3 of 3)

DAP

/ computing /

abbreviation for

distributed array processor

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 dap

dap

fist-bump greeting, with various theories as to origin and name meaning. In U.S. popular black culture by 1972 and controversial during the Vietnam War when used by U.S. soldiers, as it often was regarded by whites as a ritual act of black solidarity. Probably imitative (dap was used in 19c. for the bounce of a ball or the skip of a stone on water). Dap, meanwhile, is listed in the DAS as black slang c.1950 for "aware, up to date," also "stylish, well-dressed," in the latter case at least a shortening of dapper.