[rap] 
verb, rapped, rap⋅ping, noun | 1. | to strike, esp. with a quick, smart, or light blow: He rapped the door with his cane. |
| 2. | to utter sharply or vigorously: to rap out a command. |
| 3. | (of a spirit summoned by a medium) to communicate (a message) by raps (often fol. by out). |
| 4. | Slang. to criticize sharply: Critics could hardly wait to rap the play. |
| 5. | Slang. to arrest, detain, or sentence for a crime. |
| 6. | Metallurgy. to jar (a pattern) loose from a sand mold. |
| 7. | to knock smartly or lightly, esp. so as to make a noise: to rap on a door. |
| 8. | Slang. to talk or discuss, esp. freely, openly, or volubly; chat. |
| 9. | Slang. to talk rhythmically to the beat of rap music. |
| 10. | a quick, smart, or light blow: a rap on the knuckles with a ruler. |
| 11. | the sound produced by such a blow: They heard a loud rap at the door. |
| 12. | Slang. blame or punishment, esp. for a crime. |
| 13. | Slang. a criminal charge: a murder rap. |
| 14. | Slang. response, reception, or judgment: The product has been getting a very bad rap. |
| 15. | Slang.
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| 16. | rap music. |
| 17. | beat the rap, Slang. to succeed in evading the penalty for a crime; be acquitted: The defendant calmly insisted that he would beat the rap. |
| 18. | take the rap, Slang. to take the blame and punishment for a crime committed by another: He took the rap for the burglary. |
| rap 1 (rāp) v. rapped, rap·ping, raps v. tr.
To strike a quick light blow: rapped on the door. n.
[Middle English rappen, possibly of imitative origin.] |
A form of pop music characterized by spoken or chanted rhymed lyrics, with a syncopated, repetitive accompaniment. Rap music originated in the second half of the twentieth century in black urban communities. (See also hip-hop.)
beat the rap
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beat the rap
Escape punishment; win acquittal. For example, The youngsters were caught shoplifting, but somehow they were able to beat the rap. The rap in this idiom means "the legal charge against one." [Slang; 1920s]