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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

rap.

A sharp blow with something hard.

3 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ɹæp/
  1. A sharp blow with something hard.

    countable
  2. The blame for something, a reprimand, censure, or a legal sentence to serve in prison

    countable · slang · uncountable · with-definite-article
    You can't act irresponsibly and then expect me to take the rap.
  3. A casual talk.

    countable · informal · uncountable
  4. Rap music.

    uncountable
    They like listening to rap.
  5. A song, verse, or instance of singing in the style of rap music.

    countable · uncountable
  6. An appraisal.

    Australia · countable · informal · uncountable
    a good/great/bad rap
  7. A positive appraisal; a recommendation.

    Australia · countable · informal · uncountable
    He gave the novel quite a rap.
Where this word comes from

From Middle English rap, rappe, of North Germanic origin, related to Norwegian rapp (“a blow, strike, lash”), Swedish rapp (“a blow, lash, crack”), Danish rap (“a tap, smart, blow”). Compare Old English hreppan (“to touch, treat”). More at rape.

verb/ɹæp/
  1. To strike something sharply with one's knuckles; knock.

    intransitive
  2. To strike with a quick blow; to knock on.

    dated · transitive
  3. To free (a pattern) in a mould by light blows on the pattern, so as to facilitate its removal.

  4. To utter quickly and sharply.

    The sergeant rapped out a word of command to the troops.
  5. To speak (lyrics) in the style of rap music.

    ambitransitive
    He started to rap after listening to Tupac.
    He rapped a song to his girlfriend.
  6. To talk casually; to engage in conversation.

    informal · intransitive
Where this word comes from

From Middle English rappen, of North Germanic origin, related to Swedish rappa (“to strike, beat, rap”), German rappeln (“to rattle”).

noun/ɹæp/
  1. A lea or skein of yarn that forms the standard length taken from the reel, 80 yards of worsted or 120 yards of silk or cotton.

Where this word comes from

Uncertain.

noun/ɹæp/
  1. Any of the tokens that passed current for a halfpenny in Ireland in the early part of the eighteenth century; any coin of trifling value.

    historical
  2. A whit; a jot.

    I don't care a rap.
    That's not worth a rap.
Where this word comes from

Perhaps contracted from rapparee.

verb/ɹæp/
  1. To seize and carry off.

    transitive
  2. To transport out of oneself; to affect with rapture.

    transitive
noun/ɹæp/
  1. Acronym of record of arrest and prosecution.

    US · abbreviation · acronym · alt-of
  2. A charge, whether or not it results in a conviction.

    countable · slang
Where this word comes from

From RAP (“record of arrest and prosecution”).

verb/ɹæp/
  1. to rappel

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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.