lap

¹ American  

[lap] / læp /

noun

1. the front part of the human body from the waist to the knees when in a sitting position.

2. the part of the clothing that lies on the front portion of the body from the waist to the knees when one sits.

3. a place, environment, or situation of rest or nurture.

   the lap of luxury.

4. area of responsibility, care, charge, or control.

   They dropped the problem right in his lap.

5. a hollow place, as a hollow among hills.

6. the front part of a skirt, especially as held up to contain something.

7. a part of a garment that extends over another.

   the lap of a coat.

8. a loose border or fold.

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lap ² American  

[lap] / læp /

verb (used with object)

lapped, lapping

1. to fold over or around something; wrap or wind around something.

   to lap a bandage around one's finger.

2. to enwrap in something; wrap up; clothe.

3. to envelop or enfold.

   lapped in luxury.

4. to lay (something) partly over something underneath; lay (things) together, one partly over another; overlap.

5. to lie partly over (something underneath).

6. to get a lap or more ahead of (a competitor) in racing, as on an oval track.

7. to cut or polish with a lap.

8. to join, as by scarfing, to form a single piece with the same dimensions throughout.

9. to change (cotton, wool, etc.) into a compressed layer or sheet.

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verb (used without object)

lapped, lapping

1. to fold or wind around something.

2. to lie partly over or alongside of something else.

3. to lie upon and extend beyond a thing; overlap.

4. to extend beyond a limit.

noun

1. the act of lapping.

2. the amount of material required to go around a thing once.

3. a complete circuit of a course in racing or in walking for exercise.

   to run a lap.

4. an overlapping part.

5. the extent or amount of overlapping.

6. a rotating wheel or disk holding an abrasive or polishing powder on its surface, used for gems, cutlery, etc.

7. a compressed layer or sheet of cotton, wool, or other fibrous material usually wound on an iron rod or rolled into a cylindrical form for further processing during carding.

lap ³ American  

[lap] / læp /

verb (used with object)

lapped, lapping

1. (of water) to wash against or beat upon (something) with a light, slapping or splashing sound.

   Waves lapped the shoreline.

2. to take in (liquid) with the tongue; lick in.

   to lap water from a bowl.

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verb (used without object)

lapped, lapping

1. to wash or move in small waves with a light, slapping or splashing sound.

   The water lapped gently against the mooring.

2. to take up liquid with the tongue; lick up a liquid.

noun

1. the act of lapping liquid.

2. the lapping of water against something.

3. the sound of this.

   the quiet lap of the sea on the rocks.

4. something lapped up, as liquid food for dogs.

verb phrase

1. lap up

   1. Informal. to receive enthusiastically.

      The audience lapped up his monologue.

   2. to take in (all of a liquid) with the tongue; drink up.

      The cat lapped up her milk and looked for more.

lap ⁴ American  

[lap] / læp /

verb

Archaic.

1. archaic simple past tense of leap.

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lap ¹ British  

/ læp /

noun

1. one circuit of a racecourse or track

2. a stage or part of a journey, race, etc

3. 1. an overlapping part or projection

   2. the extent of overlap

4. the length of material needed to go around an object

5. a rotating disc coated with fine abrasive for polishing gemstones

6. any device for holding a fine abrasive to polish materials

7. metallurgy a defect in rolled metals caused by the folding of a fin onto the surface

8. a sheet or band of fibres, such as cotton, prepared for further processing

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verb

1. (tr) to wrap or fold (around or over)

   he lapped a bandage around his wrist

2. (tr) to enclose or envelop in

   he lapped his wrist in a bandage

3. to place or lie partly or completely over or project beyond

4. (tr; usually passive) to envelop or surround with comfort, love, etc

   lapped in luxury

5. (intr) to be folded

6. (tr) to overtake (an opponent) in a race so as to be one or more circuits ahead

7. (tr) to polish or cut (a workpiece, gemstone, etc) with a fine abrasive, esp to hone (mating metal parts) against each other with an abrasive

8. to form (fibres) into a sheet or band

lap ² British  

/ læp /

noun

1. the area formed by the upper surface of the thighs of a seated person

2. Also called: lapful.  the amount held in one's lap

3. a protected place or environment

   in the lap of luxury

4. any of various hollow or depressed areas, such as a hollow in the land

5. the part of one's clothing that covers the lap

6. give someone the responsibility of

7. beyond human control and power

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lap ³ British  

/ læp /

verb

1. (of small waves) to wash against (a shore, boat, etc), usually with light splashing sounds

2. (often foll by up) (esp of animals) to scoop (a liquid) into the mouth with the tongue

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noun

1. the act or sound of lapping

2. a thin food for dogs or other animals

lap Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing lap

• drop in someone's lap

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Other Word Forms

• lapper
  noun

Etymology

Origin of lap¹

First 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”

Origin of lap²

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English lappen, lap(pe) “to fold, wrap”; cognate with Dutch lappen “to patch, mend”; akin to lap ¹

Origin of lap³

First 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”

Explanation

Your lap is the top of your thighs when you sit down, where your cat might sit. Lap can also refer to a trip around a racetrack, or to the act of overtaking a competitor by a lap. Lap is associated with a number of idioms. If something "falls into your lap," you have gotten something without making much effort. For example, maybe you discovered a rare fossil in your yard while looking for your lost baseball. If you sold that fossil for a lot of money, you may find yourself now "sitting in the lap of luxury." That’s a wonderful place to be!

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lap lapped lapping

He turned up for Rafa’s farewell lap and you can still see him at courtside at major tournaments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

The president and First Lady Melania Trump took a ceremonial lap of the 1.7-mile track in his presidential limousine, The Beast.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026

Racers will lap the National Mall 147 times for a total travel distance of 250 miles, a nod to the semiquincentennial.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026

A topsy-turvy race started amid chaos as Max Verstappen crashed his Red Bull at high speed on a damp track at the end of the first lap, leading to a red flag.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026

“Not really,” he says into his mom’s lap.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

Piastri might still have held the lead, but for a collision with Carlos Sainz as he lapped his Williams.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

“Investors lapped up mining companies, housebuilders, packaging providers, tech names, and banks,” he added.

From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026

The country was rocked by the Watergate fallout, but its citizens also lapped up the gossip — like Rovere hoped to do with what little tidbits made it to Woodward and Bernstein’s book.

From Salon ● Mar. 7, 2026

“The race is now kicked into gear,” and some candidates who have been fundraising for months — or years — “may find themselves lapped by the Mahan machine,” said Andrew Acosta, a Democratic strategist.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 7, 2026

Water lines went across, lapped the stones, and rippled back to meet each other, settling, to be dappled by the sun.

From "The Martian Chronicles" by Ray Bradbury

Antonelli and Hamilton started chasing back towards Verstappen, but they were delayed while lapping Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

Williams congratulated Joint at the net before lapping up the ovation that came her way as she made her exit.

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

RBC Capital analyst Logan Reich notes Domino’s is lapping the initiatives that juiced 2025—the introduction of stuffed crusts decades after Pizza Hut and its arrival on DoorDash—with no easy levers ahead.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

If AI models begin lapping humans in most endeavors, then where will we find purpose?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 9, 2026

His memories flooded over me, wave after wave lapping at my brain, and all I could think was, I’m going to do this.

From "The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken

Related Words

• course
• distance
• round