QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON “THEIR,” “THERE,” AND “THEY’RE”
Are you aware how often people swap around “their,” “there,” and “they’re”? Prove you have more than a fair grasp over these commonly confused words.
Question 1 of 7
Which one of these commonly confused words can act as an adverb or a pronoun?
Origin of lap
1First recorded before 900; Middle English lap(pe) “lower part of a shirt or skirt,” Old English læppa “skirt (of a garment)”; cognate with Dutch lap; akin to German lappen, Old Norse leppr “lock of hair; rag, patch”
Words nearby lap
Definition for lap (2 of 4)
lap2
[ lap ]
/ læp /
verb (used with object), lapped, lap·ping.
verb (used without object), lapped, lap·ping.
noun
Origin of lap
2First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English lappen, lap(pe) “to fold, wrap”; cognate with Dutch lappen “to patch, mend”; akin to lap1
Definition for lap (3 of 4)
Origin of lap
3First recorded before 1000; Middle English lap(p)en, Old English lapian; cognate with Middle Low German lapen, Old High German laffan; akin to Latin lambere “to lick, touch,”Greek láptein “to lick, lap”
Definition for lap (4 of 4)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for lap
British Dictionary definitions for lap (1 of 3)
lap1
/ (læp) /
noun
verb laps, lapping or lapped
Derived forms of lap
lapper, nounWord Origin for lap
C13 (in the sense: to wrap): probably from lap 1
British Dictionary definitions for lap (2 of 3)
lap2
/ (læp) /
verb laps, lapping or lapped
(of small waves) to wash against (a shore, boat, etc), usually with light splashing sounds
(often foll by up) (esp of animals) to scoop (a liquid) into the mouth with the tongue
noun
the act or sound of lapping
a thin food for dogs or other animals
See also lap up
Derived forms of lap
lapper, nounWord Origin for lap
Old English lapian; related to Old High German laffan, Latin lambere, Greek laptein
British Dictionary definitions for lap (3 of 3)
lap3
/ (læp) /
noun
Word Origin for lap
Old English læppa flap; see lobe, lappet, lop ²
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Idioms and Phrases with lap
lap
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.