nap
oxford
views updated Jun 11 2018nap1 / nap/ •
v. (napped, nap·ping) [intr.] sleep lightly or briefly, esp. during the day.•
n. a short sleep, esp. during the day: excuse me, I'll just take a little nap.PHRASES: catch someone napping inf. (of a person, action, or event) find someone off guard and unprepared to respond: he caught the runner napping off second base and tagged him out.nap2 •
n. [in sing.] the raised hairs, threads, or similar small projections on the surface of fabric or suede (used esp. with reference to the direction in which they naturally lie).DERIVATIVES: nap·less adj.nap3 •
n. a card game resembling whist in which players declare the number of tricks they expect to take, up to five.nap4 •
v. (napped
, nap·ping
) [intr.] (of a horse) refuse, esp. habitually, to go on at the rider's instruction; jib.DERIVATIVES: nap·py / ˈnapē/ adj.
The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English
nap
oxford
views updated Jun 11 2018nap3 †napoleon (20-franc piece); card-game in which the player who calls five is said to
go nap, formerly
go the Napoleon. XIX. Short for
Napoleon, Christian name of certain French emperors, esp. Napoleon I (1769–1821), after whom the coin was named.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD
nap
oxford
views updated May 29 2018nap2 surface of cloth raised and cut smooth. XV (
noppe). — MLG., MDu.
noppe, rel. to
noppen trim by shearing the nap.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD
nap
oxford
views updated May 18 2018nap1 take a short sleep. OE.
hnappian, rel. to OHG.
(h)naffezan slumber (MHG.
nafzen), of unkn. orig.
Hence sb. XIII.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD
NAP
oxford
views updated May 23 2018NAP (næp) National Association for the Paralysed
The Oxford Dictionary of Abbreviations FRAN ALEXANDER , PETER BLAIR , JOHN DAINTITH , ALICE GRANDISON , VALERIE ILLINGWORTH , ELIZABETH MARTIN , ANNE STIBBS , JUDY PEARSALL , and SARA TULLOCH
