yap
verb (used without object)
to bark sharply, shrilly, or snappishly; yelp.
yap
1 American
[yap]
/ jæp /
verb (used without object)
-
yaps,
present (3rd person singular)
-
yapped,
past participle, past
-
yapping
present participle
-
to bark sharply, shrilly, or snappishly; yelp.
-
Slang. to talk shrilly, noisily, or foolishly.
verb (used with object)
-
yaps,
present (3rd person singular)
-
yapped,
past participle, past
-
yapping
present participle
noun
-
yaps
plural
-
a sharp, shrill, or snappish bark; yelp.
-
Slang.
-
shrill, noisy, or foolish talk.
-
the mouth.
Keep your yap shut.
-
-
Slang. an uncouth or stupid person; bumpkin; fool.
Yap
2
American
[yahp, yap]
/ jɑp, jæp /
noun
yap
1
British
/ jæp /
verb
-
(of a dog) to bark in quick sharp bursts; yelp
-
informal to talk at length in an annoying or stupid way; jabber
noun
-
a high-pitched or sharp bark; yelp
-
slang annoying or stupid speech; jabber
-
slang a derogatory word for mouth
interjection
Yap
2
British
/ jɑːp, jæp /
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
yapsimple
-
yapssimple
-
have yappedperfect
-
has yappedperfect
-
am yappingprogressive
-
are yappingprogressive
-
is yappingprogressive
-
have been yappingperfect progressive
-
has been yappingperfect progressive
Past
-
yappedsimple
-
had yappedperfect
-
was yappingprogressive
-
were yappingprogressive
-
had been yappingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of yap
1595–1605; 1900–05 yap for def. 5b; imitative
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:
Does your precious pup snap and yap at anything that moves?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
"It's mad people want to watch me yap," she says.
From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2025
At night, hungry coyotes yap and howl beyond the walls of Deborah’s ample, manicured yard.
From Salon ● Apr. 10, 2025
So, when the birds don't move around or yap in open spaces, that makes things more challenging for the humans.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 27, 2024
And while your yap is shut, said Delia, we’re here to see you do the right thing by our poor cousin, Angela Sheehan.
From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt
“However, in our base case we expect the 10-year yield is more likely to fall from here,” Fook Hien Yap, investment strategist, said.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026
But Yap Lay Sheng, a senior human rights specialist with Fortify Rights, told AFP: "There's no telling how the regime would treat returnees."
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
Yap remains positive on the sector, favoring oil-and-gas service providers ahead of an expected rise in capital spending in 2027, driven by energy-security needs, inventory rebuilding and production replacement amid Middle East tensions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 6, 2026
Yap raises MISC’s 2026-2027 dividend per share forecasts to MYR0.38 from MYR0.36 as he thinks the company will maintain its absolute payout moving forward.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 25, 2026
“In which case, we would make sure there was none. Yap, yap!”
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
She squints as if through cigarette smoke, and yaps: “I don’t know, Naomi! It was just the look in yer eye!”
From The Guardian ● Jul. 15, 2017
There were a few joggers and a couple of people fishing directly from the beach, but it was otherwise peaceful, punctuated only by the dull roar of lapping waves and Tobi’s occasional yaps.
From New York Times ● Dec. 30, 2016
A small boy half-heartedly kicks a deflated plastic ball in and out of the parked cars and a dog, home alone in one of the terraced houses, repeatedly yaps his indignation.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2016
And yet it’s hard to deny the pleasure of watching somebody who yaps and yaps and yaps and then goes right out there and delivers on the yap.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 14, 2015
While Tater gushed, all the humans heard was a frantic series of high-pitched yaps.
From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein
And as I feared last week, the guys in the booth yapped way too much, including talking over a mic’d up Tiger and Phil.
From Golf Digest ● Nov. 27, 2018
In the Madison Square Park dog run, we went unnoticed until a Pomeranian caught sight of us and yapped so rambunctiously that the seal and I took refuge in a nearby Starbucks.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 19, 2018
Both wagged their tails excitedly when someone came to their kennel and yapped sadly when that person walked away.
From Slate ● Jun. 9, 2017
Wall and his nemesis Dennis Schroder also yapped at each other as the teams departed for the locker rooms.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 16, 2017
The family dogs they’d brought along for the pet store’s grand opening barked and yapped and howled.
From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein
Instead, I tune into my rhythmic footsteps and the medley of background noise from squawking birds, yapping passersby and whooshing traffic.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026
On the day we connected by phone, she expected a lot of activity in her Malibu home, including air-conditioning repairers and the usual four or five yapping dogs.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
I’m a part of the problem, too, yapping about this silly kerfuffle six months out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 26, 2026
Lewis Hamilton hit out at "yapping" critics after taking his first win for Ferrari in the sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix.
From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2025
They shot straight past him and almost bowled the woman over, leaping all around her, yapping and licking.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
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