nap

1 of 6

verb (1)

napped; napping

intransitive verb

1
: to sleep briefly especially during the day : doze
2
: to be off guard

nap

2 of 6

noun (1)

: a short sleep especially during the day : snooze

nap

3 of 6

noun (2)

: a hairy, fuzzy, or downy surface (as on a fabric)
napless adjective
napped adjective

nap

4 of 6

verb (2)

napped; napping

transitive verb

: to raise a nap on (fabric or leather)

nap

5 of 6

noun (3)

British
: a pick or recommendation as a good bet to win a contest (such as a horse race)
also : one named in a nap

nap

6 of 6

verb (3)

napped; napping

transitive verb

British
: to pick or single out in a nap

Examples of nap in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
The company is looking to muscle in on China’s increasingly popular camping culture, but the car may also prove a hit with desk jockeys enduring the country’s notoriously grueling office hours and looking for a place to nap. Bloomberg, Fortune Asia, 10 Mar. 2024 Try to nap earlier in the day and keep it short; napping longer than 30 minutes can leave some residual drowsiness that is harder to shake off. Jireh Deng, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024 The best gag comes when Po tiptoes through a rooftop of napping Komodo dragons, desperate to stay quiet. Amy Nicholson, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 Meanwhile, Downey, 58, who portrayed Lewis Strauss, chairman of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and adversary of Oppenheimer, had been napping. Angel Saunders, Peoplemag, 29 Feb. 2024 The 76 comfortable, lie flat business class seats which allow passengers to sleep on an overnight flight would also encourage napping on what is a daytime four hour flight. Laurie Werner, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2024 No disrespect to the pastry chef, the talent behind the lovely bonbons and edible parting gifts, but the sweetest thing here is the Burkes’ toddler, Atticus, who plays or naps behind the kitchen door and whose dad might trot him out at the end of service. Tom Sietsema, Washington Post, 20 Feb. 2024 Sasha McCoy, a 27-year-old Washington, D.C., mother, was charged with first-degree murder in the 2022 death of her 3-year-old daughter after authorities said the girl had ingested McCoy's Percocet that was laced with fentanyl and left on the bed where the child was napping. Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 19 Feb. 2024 Anecdotes abound of elk and pronghorn strolling around turbines or napping in their shade. Catrin Einhorn, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2024
Noun
Gazal, who’d just awoken from a nap, had little interest in ice cream. Eliza Griswold, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2024 Giordano says the bolster sides and memory foam base cradled her perfectly for activities like reading, watching TV, scrolling TikTok, and even taking a nap. Nena Farrell, WIRED, 12 Mar. 2024 The first officer allowed the captain to take a nap and then dosed off himself, later attributing his sleepiness to helping take care of his one-month-old twins at home. Ryan Erik King / Jalopnik, Quartz, 12 Mar. 2024 The plane took off from Kendari at about 8 a.m., and after reaching cruising altitude, the captain took a nap while the co-pilot manned the flight, according to a preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Committee. Yan Zhuang, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024 Extremely social and outgoing, petting time is his favorite part of the day, closely followed by time to eat, play and nap (not necessarily in that order). The Arizona Republic, 8 Mar. 2024 From dealing with nap math to snacks (SO many snacks), to figuring out how to keep my son entertained, the logistics of toting along our 2-year-old caused maybe 90% of my pre-vacation stress. Cecily McAndrews, Parents, 8 Mar. 2024 Higher still, the scenic flybridge is equipped with a plush lounge, a bar, and a nap station, because who doesn’t like to catch zs after cocktails? Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 6 Mar. 2024 There's a lot more to pack (more on that later) and a lot more considerations to make (like naps and kid-friendly meals, perhaps). Emily Siner, NPR, 5 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nap.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English nappen, from Old English hnappian; akin to Old High German hnaffezen to doze

Noun (2)

Middle English noppe, from Middle Dutch, flock of wool, nap

Noun (3)

from to go nap (to make all the points in the card game Napoleon)

First Known Use

Verb (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1608, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1895, in the meaning defined above

Verb (3)

1927, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of nap was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near nap

Cite this Entry

“Nap.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nap. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

nap

1 of 4 verb
napped; napping
1
: to sleep briefly especially during the day
2
: to be off guard
was caught napping

nap

2 of 4 noun
: a short sleep especially during the day

nap

3 of 4 noun
: a hairy or downy surface on a woven fabric or leather
nappy
ˈnap-ē
adjective

nap

4 of 4 verb
napped; napping
: to raise a nap on fabric or leather
Etymology

Verb

Old English hnappian "to doze"

Noun

Middle English noppe "soft surface on a fabric," from early Dutch noppe "tuft of wool, nap"

More from Merriam-Webster on nap

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