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• sap
  sap

  noun

  the juice or vital circulating fluid of a plant, especially of a woody plant.
• SAP
  SAP

  abbreviation

  South African Police

sap

¹ American  

[sap] / sæp /

noun

1. the juice or vital circulating fluid of a plant, especially of a woody plant.

2. any vital body fluid.

3. energy; vitality.

4. sapwood.

5. Slang. a fool; sucker; dupe.

6. Metallurgy. soft metal at the core of a bar of blister steel.

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verb (used with object)

sapped, sapping

1. to drain the sap from.

sap ² American  

[sap] / sæp /

noun

1. Fortification. a deep, narrow trench constructed so as to form an approach to a besieged place or an enemy's position.

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verb (used with object)

sapped, sapping

1. to undermine; gradually or insidiously weaken or destroy.

   Synonyms:

   undermine, weaken, tire, impair, exhaust, enfeeble, enervate, drain, deplete

2. Fortification.

   1. to approach (a besieged place or an enemy position) by means of deep, narrow trenches protected by gabions or parapets.

   2. to dig such trenches in (ground).

verb (used without object)

sapped, sapping

1. Fortification. to dig a sap.

sap ³ American  

[sap] / sæp /

noun

1. a short club with a heavy tip that is used as a weapon; blackjack; bludgeon.

   The burglar carried a set of lockpicks and a sap.

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verb (used with object)

1. to hit (someone) with a club.

   If he tries to sneak out, I'll sap him over the head.

sap ¹ British  

/ sæp /

noun

1. a solution of mineral salts, sugars, etc, that circulates in a plant

2. any vital body fluid

3. energy; vigour

4. slang a gullible or foolish person

5. another name for sapwood

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verb

1. to drain of sap

SAP ² British  

abbreviation

1. South African Police

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SAP ³ British  

/ sæp /

acronym

1. Standard Assessment Procedure, the recognized performance indicator for measuring energy efficiency in buildings

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sap ⁴ British  

/ sæp /

noun

1. a deep and narrow trench used to approach or undermine an enemy position, esp in siege warfare

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verb

1. to undermine (a fortification, etc) by digging saps

2. (tr) to weaken

sap Scientific  

/ săp /

1. The watery fluid that circulates through a plant that has vascular tissues. Sap moving up the xylem carries water and minerals, while sap moving down the phloem carries water and food.

2. See cell sap

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Other Word Forms

• sapless
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of sap¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English sæp; cognate with Dutch sap; akin to German Saft juice, Old Norse safi; sap ¹ in def. 5 a shortening of saphead

Origin of sap²

First recorded in 1585–95; from French noun sape “spade, spadework,” derivative of saper “to dig a trench,” from Italian zappare “to undermine,” a military term, based on zappa “hoe”

Origin of sap³

First recorded in 1895–1900; perhaps shortening of sapling or sapwood (used as a tool or weapon)

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Explanation

To sap something is to drain or deplete something over time. If you sap a maple tree, you drain the liquid inside it to make maple syrup. But if you sap a person of strength, you've rendered him defenseless. Whether used as a noun or verb, sap is rarely a good thing. If your energy or will is sapped, it’s not meant lightly; it means you have been exhausted of all your reserve energy, you’re reduced to a shell. If someone calls you "a sap," it suggests you lack strength and character. And if you get sap — the sticky liquid inside a tree — on your hands, good luck getting it off in the middle of a forest without a bar of soap and running water. Yuck.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sap SAP sapped sapping

If OpenAI raises a similar amount before Anthropic goes public, it could sap demand for the Claude developer’s listing, some Anthropic investors said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Giant hogweed contains a sap which can leave painful blistering and scarring when it comes into contact with human skin.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

One such chemical is sulfoxaflor, a next generation pesticide introduced in 2013 to eliminate sap feeding insects such as aphids on crops including soybeans and corn.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 10, 2026

On a sidewalk in a middle-class neighborhood of Colima city, the Bejarano family is selling tuba, a refreshing fermented drink made from the fresh, sweet sap of the coconut palm tree.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026

“Shh! Sap attack! You gonna get us in trouble. Two sap attacks!”

From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia

But just a few days before trading started, SAP swooped in and bought the company.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

Then in 2021, SAP decided to spin it out via an IPO that valued it at $21 billion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026

In addition, the analysts flag a likely deceleration in constant-currency backlog growth, estimating SAP will end the year at 24% organic growth versus the 26% figure from June.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026

Find insight on TSMC, ASML, SAP and more in the latest Market Talks covering technology, media and telecom.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

SAP, s. liquid of any kind taken to solids.

From Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume XXIV. by Alexander Leighton

James does share moments of affection and victory with Odin but there’s nothing to relieve the constant danger, even though structurally, the film has already sapped its potential suspense.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

In 2020, it was global lockdowns that sapped demand for fuel almost overnight, while triggering a short-lived U.S. recession.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 20, 2026

In turn, Williamsburg has been sapped of all its affordability, and increasingly, its cool factor.

From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2026

Reopening the Strait of Hormuz as part of a peace deal between the U.S. and Iran would ease an energy crisis that has sapped economic growth and fueled inflation worldwide.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026

She took several deep breaths, as if saying just that much had sapped her strength.

From "The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin)" by James Dashner

It offloaded bare-bones models into rental fleets, sapping resale values.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

The headwinds are “collectively sapping risk sentiment and AUD,” says the head of the FX Strategy group.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

What it suggests is each rally is sapping more and more strength from the bulls.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 19, 2026

But this has been a recurring issue throughout a sapping campaign as goalkeeper Ramsdale needed no reminding.

From BBC ● Apr. 12, 2026

The wound in my arm was sapping my ability to think, but I muttered, “Communication device ... spy at camp.”

From "The Last Olympian" by Rick Riordan

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Related Words

• blunt
• deplete
• destroy
• drain
• erode
• exhaust
• impair
• ruin
• undermine
• vitiate
• wreck

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