dap

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noun (1)

ˈdap 

plural daps

chiefly African American English

: a stylized gesture in which two people clasp hands (as in greeting or solidarity) and that often involves a variety of additional gestures (such as bumping fists, snapping fingers, and slapping palms)

Across the U.S. and around the globe, the dap has various marvelous permutations among melanated people. It might be a loud smack of hands, followed by a grip and a shoulder lean-in. Or a four-fingered shake, then sliding together of fingers, then the shoulder lean-in and a back slap. Each gesture wordlessly denotes the depth of respect and intimacy the two people share.

—Rhonda Henderson and Aaron Stallworth

… [Basketball player Duncan] Robinson and [close friend Harry] Rafferty were having breakfast while Lakers star LeBron James was eating at a nearby table. "LeBron walked over and goes, 'What up, Dunc?'" Rafferty said. "And he gave him a dap. …"

—Adam Himmelsbach

"We ride together, we die together, bad marriage for life!" the two [Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith] joked (using a Bad Boys reference), followed with a loving dap.

—Tonja Renée Stidhum

For many years, [Big] B [Brian Keith Jones] was famous for protecting Nelly's [Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., rapper] personal space. But what most folks didn't see was the kind hearted gentle giant that was always quick to lovingly greet with a hug, some dap and a smile.

—Delores Shante

—usually used in the phrases give dap(s) or give some dap

[Rajai] Davis wasn't in Monday's starting lineup, but he was still out on the left field foul line when the starters were running their pregame sprints "giving daps and doing our handshakes."

—Paul Hoynes

By the time Jayson Tatum turned around to give teammate Jaylen Brown some dap for a pass to set up an easy layup, Aaron Nesmith's inbounds pass was in his grasp. Tatum knocked the ball back to Brown, who pulled up for a 28-footer. Swish.

—Gary Washburn

Officer Rick Trevino stepped through the front doors of Bowsher High School and before he could take three paces, his name echoed through the empty hallway. "Trevino!," Anthony Farnum, a Bowsher student, yelled in excitement. … The two then gave each other dap—a less formal, more intimate handshake. It's a greeting often shared between people with mutual respect for one another.

—Javonte Anderson

dap

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verb (1)

dapped; dapping; daps

transitive + intransitive

chiefly African American English

: to greet (someone) with a stylized gesture that involves clasping hands and incorporating a variety of additional gestures (such as bumping fists, snapping fingers, and slapping palms)

… fans come up to me, they dap me, they express their appreciation for hard work and passion.

—NBA player Kevin Garnett, quoted at boston.com

The way we take care of each other, explained India Luckett of the Stronghold Civic Association, is evident in the nature of how we dap.

—Rhonda Henderson and Aaron Stallworth

—usually used with up

He dapped up his best friend.

[NFL players] Marshawn Lynch … and Draymond Green bounded off their bus to dap up fans on Lakeside Drive.

—Dan Moore

While I'll be the first to admit that my husband is one of the best dads I know, he gets a lot of praise heaped on him for doing stuff that I think just comes with the job. I can't tell you how many times I've seen brothers stop and dap him up on the street in our Brooklyn neighborhood just for walking our son to school (no kidding!).

—Angela Johnson

[WNBA players] Natisha Hiedeman and Tiffany Hayes dapped up with a special handshake at center court, surrounded by their teammates as the Mohegan Sun Arena crowd erupted in cheers.

—Lila Bromberg

dap

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verb (2)

dapped; dapping; daps

1

transitive + intransitive : to fish by dropping a baited hook or fly (see fly entry 4 sense 3) gently on the surface of the water : dib entry 1

… "dapping" your lure, fly or bait from directly above will provide results.

—Jeffrey Walters

2

transitive + intransitive : to dip or skip gently or quickly on, along, or into the surface of water

dapping stones

When an adult mayfly … lays her eggs … she daps up and down on the surface of the water to dislodge the eggs and cause them to drop into the water.

—Bill Bean

A single leaf falls as a bird daps over the water.

—John Vachon

3

transitive : to create a notch or slot in (a beam or girder)

To minimize the visibility of the center pier, the girder's dapped (partially cutaway) ends extend into the pier cap.

—Civil Engineering

dapping noun

Dapping consists of lowering a fly through the streamside foliage without casting, and dancing it up and down on the surface …

—Ernest Schwiebert

dap

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noun (2)

plural daps

1

: a baited hook or fly (see fly entry 4 sense 3) that is dropped gently on the surface of the water to catch fish

… young Charlie Cooke, Bonniconlon [Ireland], did well on the dap catching a 1.5 lb trout.

—Derek Evans

2

: a notch or slot created in a beam or girder

… the common practice of cutting ''daps'' on the underside of the beams to accommodate the supporting beams appears to have substantial strength-reducing effects.

—Adam Taylor et al.

DAP

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abbreviation

diammonium phosphate

Diammonium phosphate (DAP), the world's most commonly used fertilizer, reached its highest price on record last week …

—The Lawton (Oklahoma) Constitution

Examples of dap in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

His wish was granted when the Atlanta rapper walked up with a welcoming dap. —Demicia Inman, VIBE.com, 6 May 2025

There are closeups of stank-faces, daps, acrylic nails turning knobs. —Sheldon Pearce, The New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2025

His three-picture carousel included a close-up of a stoic Andrews with eye-black under his focused eyes, a locker room dap up with Lamar Jackson and a photo of Baltimore’s all-time touchdowns leader peeking out of a locker stall dramatized by a black and white filter. —Sam Cohn, Sun Sentinel, 24 Jan. 2025

Subtle smile lines delicately carve his glowing mahogany skin as multiple daps, hugs, and handshakes are shared. —Demicia Inman, VIBE.com, 6 Sep. 2024

Verb

Malone admired the new office decor, then dapped up Booth. —Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 11 Apr. 2025

In the fourth quarter of that game, running back Markese Stepp scored a touchdown and ran toward Bush, dapping up the former Trojans legend. —Antonio Morales, The Athletic, 24 Apr. 2024

Harris went to each of his teammates to dap them up before heading off the floor. —Hunter Patterson, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2025

Patrick Mahomes dapped him up, and Dirk Nowitki looked on from courtside. —Adam Zagoria, Forbes.com, 10 Apr. 2025

Then an extra long one for Coach Prime before dapping up his quarterback, Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, and rapper and friend Lil’ Wayne. —Ralph D. Russo, The Athletic, 15 Dec. 2024

As some of his teammates embraced Wiggins on the court after the final horn, Butler dapped up a couple friends courtside and bolted for the locker room. —Danny Emerman, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2025

Bad ankle and all, Ellis happily signed every sheet of paper foisted upon him in the Crown Heights community center, posed for every selfie and dapped up every fan until his postgame receiving line finally disappeared. —Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 3 Sep. 2019

Afterward, a montage follows of chef Luca (Will Poulter) dapping up Marcus, Richie dapping up Neil (Matty Matheson), while Natalie (Abby Elliott) and Marcus share a hug. —Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 4 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

coinage probably patterned on dab entry 1, dip entry 1, tap entry 1 and phonetically similar words

Note: The phonetic frame alveolar plosive/vowel/labial plosive appears to constitute a phonestheme in English found in noun and verb derivatives denoting a quick, light movement. Compare also rap entry 1 and extended forms such as dabble, dibble entry 1. This word has probably arisen independently of dap entry 3 and dap entry 4.

Verb (1)

derivative of dap entry 1

Verb (2)

coinage probably patterned on dab entry 1, dip entry 1, tap entry 1 and phonetically similar words

Note: See note at dap entry 1.

Noun (2)

derivative of dap entry 3

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1971, in the meaning defined above

Verb (1)

1971, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1653, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1920, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing dap

• gave each other dap
• give dap(s)
• give some dap
• some dap