trap

[ trap ]

/ træp /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR trap ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a contrivance used for catching game or other animals, as a mechanical device that springs shut suddenly.

any device, stratagem, trick, or the like for catching a person unawares.

any of various devices for removing undesirable substances from a moving fluid, vapor, etc., as water from steam or cinders from coal gas.

Also called air trap. an arrangement in a pipe, as a double curve or a U-shaped section, in which liquid remains and forms a seal for preventing the passage or escape of air or of gases through the pipe from behind or below.

traps, the percussion instruments of a jazz or dance band.

Trapshooting, Skeet. a device for hurling clay pigeons into the air.

the piece of wood, shaped somewhat like a shoe hollowed at the heel, and moving on a pivot, used in playing the game of trapball.

the game of trapball.

trapdoor.

Sports. an act or instance of trapping a ball.

Also called mousetrap, trap play. Football. a play in which a defensive player, usually a guard or tackle, is allowed by the team on offense to cross the line of scrimmage into the backfield and is then blocked out from the side, thereby letting the ball-carrier run through the opening in the line.

Slang. mouth: Keep your trap shut.

Chiefly British. a carriage, especially a light, two-wheeled one.

verb (used with object), trapped, trap·ping.

to catch in a trap; ensnare: to trap foxes.

to catch by stratagem, artifice, or trickery.

to furnish or set with traps.

to provide (a drain or the like) with a trap.

to stop and hold by a trap, as air in a pipe.

Sports. to catch (a ball) as it rises after having just hit the ground.

Football. to execute a trap against (a defensive player).

verb (used without object), trapped, trap·ping.

to set traps for game: He was busy trapping.

to engage in the business of trapping animals for their furs.

Trapshooting, Skeet. to work the trap.

Nearby words

transvestite, transylvania, transylvanian alps, trantas dot, tranter, trap, trap car, trap cut, trap door, trap gun, trap house

Origin of trap

before 1000; Middle English trappe (noun), trappen (v.), Old English træppe (noun), cognate with Middle Dutch trappe (Dutch trap) trap, step, staircase; akin to Old English treppan to tread, German Treppe staircase

SYNONYMS FOR trap

1, 2 T rap , pitfall , snare apply to literal or figurative contrivances for deceiving and catching animals or people. Literally, a trap is a mechanical contrivance for catching animals, the main feature usually being a spring: a trap baited with cheese for mice. Figuratively, trap suggests the scheme of one person to take another by surprise and thereby gain an advantage: a trap for the unwary. A pitfall is (usually) a concealed pit arranged for the capture of large animals or of people who may fall into it; figuratively, it is any concealed danger, error, or source of disaster: to avoid the pitfalls of life. A snare is a device for entangling birds, rabbits, etc., with intent to capture; figuratively, it implies enticement and inveiglement: the temptress' snare.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR trap ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formstrap·like, adjective

Definition for trap (2 of 4)

trap

[ trap ]

/ træp /

noun

traps, Informal. personal belongings; baggage.

verb (used with object), trapped, trap·ping.

to furnish with or as with trappings; caparison.

Origin of trap

1300–50; Middle English trappe (noun), trappen (v.) < ?

Definition for trap (3 of 4)

trap

[ trap ]

/ træp /

noun Geology.

any of various fine-grained, dark-colored igneous rocks having a more or less columnar structure, especially some form of basalt.

Origin of trap

1785–95; < Swedish trapp, variant of trappa stair (so named from the stepped appearance of their outcrops) < Middle Low German trappe. See trap¹

Also called traprock.

Definition for trap (4 of 4)

trap

⁴

[ trap ]

/ træp /

noun Scot.

a ladder or ladderlike device used to reach a loft, attic, etc.

Origin of trap

⁴

1750–60; < Dutch: stepladder; see trap¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for trap

But Reconcile is from a slightly different arm of Houston hip-hop—more focused on spiritual triumph over the trap.
Down With the King: Christianity Isn’t Hiding in Rap’s Closet|Stereo Williams|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Do not fall into the trap of being swayed by political notion.
Is Pope Francis Backpedaling on Gays?|Jay Michaelson|November 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
You now have a growing number of candidates and elected officials who can do that without having to fall into that trap.
The Republican Rainbow Coalition Is Real|Tim Mak|November 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By the time Sotloff was allowed to leave the border crossing, the trap was set.
Obama Administration and Sotloff Family Battle Over Blame for Journalist’s Kidnapping|Josh Rogin|September 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST

In this way, the U.S. would avoid the trap of being viewed, once again, as the leader of an anti-Islamic crusade.
Stop the ISIS War Before It Gets Worse!|Jeffrey Sachs, Michael Shank|September 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Frye was caught in a trap of his own setting and could not sleep nights.
Uncle Terry|Charles Clark Munn
Cynthy is one of the most capable girls, smart as a trap, and bright as a biscuit.
The Landlord at Lion's Head, Complete|William Dean Howells
It is best to have the trap set so that mice nibbling at bait will not throw it.
Deadfalls and Snares|A. R. (Arthur Robert) Harding
What is wanted is a trap capable of securing the game that hops or flies.
The Life of the Spider|J. Henri Fabre
I have used that trap for a quarter of a century, and I never saw one more suitable for travel.
The Lair of the White Worm|Bram Stoker

British Dictionary definitions for trap (1 of 3)

trap

/ (træp) /

noun

a mechanical device or enclosed place or pit in which something, esp an animal, is caught or penned

any device or plan for tricking a person or thing into being caught unawares

anything resembling a trap or prison

a fitting for a pipe in the form of a U-shaped or S-shaped bend that contains standing water to prevent the passage of gases

any similar device

a device that hurls clay pigeons into the air to be fired at by trapshooters

any one of a line of boxlike stalls in which greyhounds are enclosed before the start of a race

See trap door

a light two-wheeled carriage

a slang word for mouth

golf an obstacle or hazard, esp a bunker

(plural) jazz slang percussion instruments

(usually plural) Australian obsolete, slang a policeman

verb traps, trapping or trapped

(tr) to catch, take, or pen in or as if in a trap; entrap

(tr) to ensnare by trickery; trick

(tr) to provide (a pipe) with a trap

to set traps in (a place), esp for animals

Derived Formstraplike, adjective

Word Origin for trap

Old English træppe; related to Middle Low German trappe, Medieval Latin trappa

British Dictionary definitions for trap (2 of 3)

trap

/ (træp) /

noun

an obsolete word for trappings (def. 2)

verb traps, trapping or trapped

(tr often foll by out) to dress or adorn

Word Origin for trap

C11: probably from Old French drap cloth

British Dictionary definitions for trap (3 of 3)

trap

traprock

/ (træp) /

noun

any fine-grained often columnar dark igneous rock, esp basalt

any rock in which oil or gas has accumulated

Word Origin for trap

C18: from Swedish trappa stair (from its steplike formation); see trap 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for trap (1 of 2)

trap

"contrivance for catching unawares," late Old English træppe "snare, trap," from Proto-Germanic *trap- (cf. Middle Dutch trappe "trap, snare"), related to Germanic words for "stair, step, tread" (cf. Middle Dutch, Middle Low German trappe, treppe, German Treppe "step, stair"). Probably akin to Old French trape, Spanish trampa "trap, pit, snare," but the exact relationship is uncertain. The connecting notion seems to be "that on which an animal steps." Sense of "deceitful practice, trickery" is first recorded c.1400. Sense in speed trap recorded from 1906. Slang meaning "mouth" is from 1776. Trap door "door in a floor or ceiling" (often hidden and leading to a passageway or secret place) is first attested late 14c.

Word Origin and History for trap (1 of 2)

trap

c.1400, "ensnare (an animal), catch in a trap; encircle; capture," from trap (n.) or from Old English betræppan. Figurative use is slightly earlier (late 14c.). Related: Trapped; trapping.

Idioms and Phrases with trap

trap

see fall into a trap; mind like a steel trap.

trap

.css-1gxch3{color:#1a1a1a;font-size:18px;font-weight:normal;font-style:italic;}noun

verb (used without object), trapped, trap·ping.

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Origin of trap

Definition for.css-ylq2vz{color:#1a1a1a;} trap (2 of 4)

trap

noun

verb (used with object), trapped, trap·ping.

Origin of trap

Definition for trap (3 of 4)

trap

noun Geology.

Origin of trap

Definition for trap (4 of 4)

trap

noun Scot.

Origin of trap

Examples from the Web for trap

British Dictionary definitions for trap (1 of 3)

trap

noun

verb traps, trapping or trapped

Word Origin for trap

British Dictionary definitions for trap (2 of 3)

trap

noun

verb traps, trapping or trapped

Word Origin for trap

British Dictionary definitions for trap (3 of 3)

trap

traprock

noun

Word Origin for trap

Word Origin and History for trap (1 of 2)

trap

Word Origin and History for trap (1 of 2)

trap

Idioms and Phrases with trap

trap

noun

Definition for trap (2 of 4)