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soap

[ sohp ]
/ soʊp /
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See synonyms for: soap / soaped / soaping on Thesaurus.com

noun
a substance used for washing and cleansing purposes, usually made by treating a fat with an alkali, as sodium or potassium hydroxide, and consisting chiefly of the sodium or potassium salts of the acids contained in the fat.
any metallic salt of an acid derived from a fat.
Slang. money, especially as used for bribery in politics.
Slang.Also soaper. soap opera.
verb (used with object)
to rub, cover, lather, or treat with soap.
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Idioms about soap

    no soap, Informal. no go: He wanted me to vote for him, but I told him no soap.

Origin of soap

before 1000; Middle English sope,Old English sāpe, cognate with German Seife,Dutch zeep, all <West Germanic (perhaps ≫ Latin sāpō;cf. saponify)

OTHER WORDS FROM soap

soapless, adjectivesoaplike, adjectiveoĀ·verĀ·soap, verb (used with object)unĀ·soaped, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Ā© Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use soap in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for soap

soap
/ (sÉ™ŹŠp) /

noun
verb
(tr) to apply soap to
(tr often foll by up) slang
  1. to flatter or talk persuasively to
  2. US and Canadian to bribe

Derived forms of soap

soapless, adjectivesoaplike, adjective

Word Origin for soap

Old English sāpe; related to Old High German seipfa, Old French savon, Latin sāpō
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition Ā© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 Ā© HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for soap

soap
[ sōp ]

A substance used for washing or cleaning, consisting of a mixture of sodium or potassium salts of naturally occurring fatty acids. Like detergents, soaps work by surrounding particles of grease or dirt with their molecules, thereby allowing them to be carried away. Unlike detergents, soaps react with the minerals common in most water, forming an insoluble film that remains on fabrics. For this reason soap is not as efficient a cleaner as most detergents. The film is also what causes rings to form in bathtubs. Compare detergent.
The American HeritageĀ® Science Dictionary Copyright Ā© 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with soap

soap

The American HeritageĀ® Idioms Dictionary Copyright Ā© 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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