tape
Americannoun
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tapes
plural
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a strip of cloth, paper, or plastic with an adhesive surface, used for sealing, binding, or attaching items together; adhesive tape or masking tape.
-
a long, narrow strip of fabric used for tying garments, binding seams or carpets, etc.
-
a long, narrow strip of paper, metal, etc.
-
a magnetic tape carrying recorded sound or images.
I made a digital copy of that tape of Grandpa playing the violin.
-
a string stretched across the finishing line in a race and broken by the winning contestant on crossing the line.
verb (used with object)
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tapes,
present (3rd person singular)
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taped,
past participle, past
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taping
present participle
-
to furnish with a tape or tapes.
-
to tie up, bind, or attach with tape.
-
to measure with or as if with a tape measure.
-
to record or prerecord on magnetic tape.
verb (used without object)
-
tapes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
taped,
past participle, past
-
taping
present participle
noun
-
a long thin strip, made of cotton, linen, etc, used for binding, fastening, etc
-
any long narrow strip of cellulose, paper, metal, etc, having similar uses
-
a string stretched across the track at the end of a race course
-
slang military another word for stripe 1
verb
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Also: tape-record. (also intr) to record (speech, music, etc)
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to furnish with tapes
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to bind, measure, secure, or wrap with tape
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informal (usually passive) to take stock of (a person or situation); sum up
he's got the job taped
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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tapernoun
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pretapeverb (used with object)
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retapeverb (used with object)
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tapelessadjective
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tapelikeadjective
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untapedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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tapesimple
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tapessimple
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have tapedperfect
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has tapedperfect
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am tapingprogressive
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are tapingprogressive
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is tapingprogressive
-
have been tapingperfect progressive
-
has been tapingperfect progressive
Past
-
tapedsimple
-
had tapedperfect
-
was tapingprogressive
-
were tapingprogressive
-
had been tapingperfect progressive
Future
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
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Earlier this season players left tape and drinks at the swimming pool and were shown a picture the next day.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
If you want to hear what passes for rigor in Weiss’ newsroom, the tape is available.
From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026
The process “might be difficult if you haven’t spent much time with a tape measure and screwdriver,” he says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026
Bass said she has cut red tape to ensure that Palisades residents can rebuild their homes, and apologized for being gone when the blaze broke out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
He went out and got a flat piece of cardboard and folded it up into a box, sticking a big piece of tape on the bottom.
From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones
At least President Richard Nixon’s “expletive deleted” cursing was on secret White House tapes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026
The statute defines “videotape service provider” to include any person in the business of delivering “prerecorded video cassette tapes or similar audio visual materials.”
From Slate ● Oct. 17, 2026
Littleton Auctions is handling sale and say the tapes, recorded directly from the sound desk, form the only master archive of their kind.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
As part of his prep work, Hunnam tried to obtain the tapes from an interview conducted with Gein soon after his arrest.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
The tapes I wore threadbare on my Walkman during cross-country practices.
From "The Miseducation of Cameron Post" by emily m. danforth
I taped over pictures of myself and put away anything with personal information, so that Tau Robotics’ bipedal robots wouldn’t collect any identifying data.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
There was a small kitchen, with a sign taped to the fridge: “Please clean up after yourself no maid service here!!!”
From Slate ● Sep. 18, 2026
Mr. Adams had also been struck by the fliers taped up around New York in which relatives and friends of the missing at the World Trade Center sought information about their loved ones.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Across the French capital, where few homes have air conditioning, desperate locals had taped foil survival blankets over their windows, hoping to keep out the fierce sun.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Laney’s picture of the brownstone was taped to the wall next to Hyacinth’s wreath.
From "The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street" by Karina Yan Glaser
When “The Kelly Clarkson” show entered its fifth season in 2023, it began taping in New York City, prompting the singer and her two kids to move to the Big Apple.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 19, 2026
It is planning a party in the Meatpacking District, and will partner with the “Adults” actor Owen Thiele to host a branded live taping of a podcast episode.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
“We have not missed a beat,” Edwards said as he, Lucey and Barberie relaxed in an office lounge after a recent taping.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
Photographs shared online show some of them taping up windows and draping windproof nets across their homes and shops.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
“Oh, Peeta . I whisper. Caesar and Peeta have a few empty exchanges before Caesar asks him about rumors that I’m taping propos for the districts. “They’re using her, obviously,” says Peeta.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
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