tape

American  

[teyp] / teɪp /

noun

1. a strip of cloth, paper, or plastic with an adhesive surface, used for sealing, binding, or attaching items together; adhesive tape or masking tape.

2. a long, narrow strip of fabric used for tying garments, binding seams or carpets, etc.

3. a long, narrow strip of paper, metal, etc.

4. tape measure.

5. magnetic tape.

6. a magnetic tape carrying recorded sound or images.

   I made a digital copy of that tape of Grandpa playing the violin.

7. a string stretched across the finishing line in a race and broken by the winning contestant on crossing the line.

8. ticker tape.

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verb (used with object)

taped, taping

1. to furnish with a tape or tapes.

2. to tie up, bind, or attach with tape.

3. to measure with or as if with a tape measure.

4. to record or prerecord on magnetic tape.

verb (used without object)

taped, taping

1. to record something on magnetic tape.

tape British  

/ teɪp /

noun

1. a long thin strip, made of cotton, linen, etc, used for binding, fastening, etc

2. any long narrow strip of cellulose, paper, metal, etc, having similar uses

3. a string stretched across the track at the end of a race course

4. slang military another word for stripe 1

5. See magnetic tape ticker tape paper tape tape recording

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verb

1. Also: tape-record.  (also intr) to record (speech, music, etc)

2. to furnish with tapes

3. to bind, measure, secure, or wrap with tape

4. informal (usually passive) to take stock of (a person or situation); sum up

   he's got the job taped

tape Idioms  

1. see red tape.

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Other Word Forms

• pretape verb (used with object)
• retape verb (used with object)
• tapeless adjective
• tapelike adjective
• taper noun
• untaped adjective

Etymology

Origin of tape

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; unexplained variant of tappe, Old English tæppe “strip (of cloth),” literally, “part torn off”; akin to Middle Low German teppen “to tear, pluck”

Explanation

Tape is a sticky strip of material you can use for fastening paper or other light objects. You can use a piece of tape to tape a "Keep Out" sign to your bedroom door. A long strip marked with inches or centimeters is a measuring tape, and this is actually the earliest meaning of the word tape. It evolved to be used for many narrow strips, like the tape a marathon runner breaks through at the finish line, the crime scene tape that police use to mark off an area, or the tape you use for recording sound or video.

Example Sentences

You can probably still do it, make no mistake, but it might take you a few minutes, and there’s a chance you’ll get caught in red tape.

From Slate • Apr. 28, 2026

“This tape continues to have bad breadth,” said Flood.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 27, 2026

DeSantis signs a law that slashes red tape and lets educators build facilities in commercial districts.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

These days, some distributors will put their titles out on tape if their aesthetic or the time period they evoke feels appropriate for VHS.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026

The grandma-like paper was a meadow of watercolor flowers, held together by yards of Scotch tape.

From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen

Related Words

• line
• rope