clap.
The act of striking the palms of the hands, or any two surfaces, together.
Meaning & usage
The act of striking the palms of the hands, or any two surfaces, together.
He summoned the waiter with a clap.
The explosive sound of thunder.
Any loud, sudden, explosive sound made by striking hard surfaces together, or resembling such a sound.
Off in the distance, he heard the clap of thunder.
A slap with the hand, usually in a jovial manner.
His father's affection never went further than a handshake or a clap on the shoulder.
A single, sudden act or motion; a stroke; a blow.
The nether part of the beak of a hawk.
A dropping of cow dung (presumably from the sound made as it hits the ground)
Where this word comes from
From Middle English clappen, from Old English clæppan, *clappian, from Proto-West Germanic *klappijan, *klappōn, from Proto-Germanic *klappōną (“to clap”). Cognate with Dutch klappen, Icelandic klappa, Faroese klappa and Danish klappe.
To strike the palms of the hands together, creating a sharp sound.
The children began to clap in time with the music.
To applaud.
The audience loudly clapped the actress, who responded with a deep curtsey.
It isn’t the singers they are clapping; it's the composer.
To slap with the hand in a jovial manner.
He would often clap his teammates on the back for encouragement.
To bring two surfaces together forcefully, creating a sharp sound.
He clapped the empty glass down on the table.
She clapped the book shut.
To slam (a door or window); formerly often construed with to.
To create or assemble (something) hastily (usually followed by up or together).
We should clap together a shelter before nightfall.
The rival factions clapped up a truce.
To set or put, usually in haste.
The sheriff clapped him in jail.
She was the prettiest thing I'd ever clapped eyes on.
To shoot (somebody) with a gun.
To defeat.
He started a fight but then got clapped immediately.
To have sex, fornicate, copulate.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English clappen, from Old English clæppan, *clappian, from Proto-West Germanic *klappijan, *klappōn, from Proto-Germanic *klappōną (“to clap”). Cognate with Dutch klappen, Icelandic klappa, Faroese klappa and Danish klappe.
Synonym of gonorrhea.
Where this word comes from
Uncertain. Probably from Old French clapoir (“bubo, inflammation from infection”), from clapier (“brothel”). May also be from old, unsafe treatments for gonorrhea, such as clapping the penis between a book and a hard surface to break up obstructions in the urethra and permit urination. Attested from the 16th century.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.