pad

1 of 5

noun (1)

1
a
: a thin flat mat or cushion: such as
(1)
: a guard worn to shield body parts against impact
(3)
: padding used to shape an article of clothing
(4)
: a piece of usually folded absorbent material (such as gauze) used as a surgical dressing or protective covering
(5)
: a component of certain brake systems (such as disc brakes) consisting of a plate covered with a frictional material
(6)
: a piece of soft stuffed material used as or under a saddle
b
: a piece of material saturated with ink for inking the surface of a rubber stamp
2
: a collection of sheets of paper glued or fastened together at one end
3
a
: the cushioned thickening of the underside of the toes of an animal
b
: the foot of an animal
4
a
: living quarters
b
: bed
5
a(1)
: an area used for helicopter takeoffs and landings
(2)
: a section of an airstrip used for warm-ups or turnarounds
c
: a horizontal concrete surface (as for parking a mobile home)
6
a
: a floating leaf of a water plant
b
: the flattened, fleshy, paddle-shaped stem segment of a cactus (such as a prickly pear)

pad

2 of 5

verb (1)

padded; padding

transitive verb

1
a
: to furnish with a pad or padding
b
2
: to expand or increase especially with needless, misleading, or fraudulent matter
pad the sales figures
often used with out
they pad out their bibliographiesJ. P. Kenyon

pad

3 of 5

verb (2)

padded; padding

transitive verb

: to traverse on foot

intransitive verb

: to go on foot : walk
especially : to walk with or as if with padded feet
the dog padded along beside him
padding around in bedroom slippers

pad

4 of 5

noun (2)

: a soft muffled or slapping sound

pad

5 of 5

noun (3)

1
dialectal British : path
2
: a horse that moves along at an easy pace
3
archaic : footpad

Examples of pad in a Sentence

Noun (1) the waitress keeps a pad in the pocket of her apron to write down orders I went back to my pad to get some rest a pad on the chair to keep it from getting scratched welcome to my pad Verb (1) the journalist was fired for padding certain stories to make them more interesting Verb (2) a cat padded silently by
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
In an announcement, Fisher-Price instructed consumers to immediately remove the swing’s headrest and an insert from the seat pad that supports an infant’s body, since those components can increase the risk of suffocation. Aria Bendix, NBC News, 10 Oct. 2024 Choose from multiple pack sizes, colors, and pad sizes. Chaunie Brusie, Rn, Parents, 8 Oct. 2024
Verb
But, the Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction appears to have attracted some people more interested in padding their own pockets than supporting its charitable cause. Marc Hershberg, Forbes, 23 Sep. 2024 Detroit took advantage and padded its lead quickly after, when Amon-Ra St. Brown ran a curl, caught the pass from Goff and then flipped it to teammate Jahmyr Gibbs, who tore up the sideline for 20 yards and a 20-7 lead. Andrew Greif, NBC News, 23 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for pad 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pad.' 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

Noun (1)

origin unknown

Verb (2)

perhaps from Middle Dutch paden to follow a path, from pad path

Noun (2)

imitative

Noun (3)

Middle Dutch pad

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1554, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (1)

1827, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (2)

1553, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Noun (2)

1879, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1567, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of pad was in 1553

Dictionary Entries Near pad

Cite this Entry

“Pad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pad. Accessed 13 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

pad

1 of 4 verb
padded; padding
1
: to go on foot
2
: to move along with a muffled step

pad

2 of 4 noun
1
a
: a thin flat mat or cushion
b
: a guard worn to shield body parts against impact
c
: a piece of usually folded absorbent material (as gauze)
d
: a piece of material that holds ink for inking a rubber stamp
2
a
: the hairy foot of some mammals (as a fox or hare)
b
: the soft thickening of the underside of the foot or toes of some mammals (as dogs)
3
: a floating leaf of a water plant
4
: a number of sheets of writing paper glued together at one edge
5
6
a
: living quarters : home

pad

3 of 4 verb
padded; padding
1
: to furnish with a pad or padding
2
: to expand with unnecessary or unimportant material
pad a speech

pad

4 of 4 noun
: a soft muffled or slapping sound
Etymology

Verb

probably from early Dutch paden "to follow a path"

Noun

origin unknown

Medical Definition

pad

1 of 2 noun
1
a
: a usually square or rectangular piece of often folded typically absorbent material (as gauze) fixed in place over some part of the body as a dressing or other protective covering
2
: a part of the body or of an appendage that resembles or is suggestive of a cushion : a thick fleshy resilient part: as
a
: the sole of the foot or underside of the toes of an animal (as a dog) that is typically thickened so as to form a cushion
b
: the underside of the extremities of the fingers
especially : the ball of the thumb

PAD

2 of 2 abbreviation
peripheral arterial disease

More from Merriam-Webster on pad

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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