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pap

 - 12 dictionary results

pap

1  [pap]
Use pap in a Sentence
–noun
1. soft food for infants or invalids, as bread soaked in water or milk.
2. an idea, talk, book, or the like, lacking substance or real value.
Origin:
1400–50; late ME; a nursery word akin to D pap, G Pappe, L, It pappa

Related forms:
paplike, adjective

Synonyms:
2. drivel, balderdash, twaddle.

pap

2  [pap]
–noun Chiefly Dialect.
1. a teat; nipple.
2. something resembling a teat or nipple.
Origin:
1150–1200; ME pappe; cf. dial. Norw, Sw pappe, L papilla (see papilla ), Lith pãpas, all from a base *pap-; akin to pap 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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pap 1   (pāp)   
n.  

  1. Midland U.S. A teat or nipple.

  2. Something resembling a nipple.


[Middle English pappe, probably from Latin papilla; see papilla.]
pap 2   (pāp)   
n.  

  1. Soft or semiliquid food, as for infants.

  2. Material lacking real value or substance: TV shows that offer nothing but pap.

  3. Slang Money and favors obtained as political patronage: "self-seeking politicians primarily interested in patronage, privilege, and pap" (Fiorello H. La Guardia).


[Middle English, from Old French papa, from Latin, children's word for food.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

pap  (1)
"soft food for infants," c.1430, from O.Fr. papa "watered gruel," from L. pappa, a widespread word in children's language for "food" (e.g. M.H.G., Du. pap, Ger. Pappe), imitative of an infant's noise when hungry; possibly associated with pap (2) (q.v.). Meaning "over-simplified idea" first recorded 1548.

pap  (2)
"nipple of a woman's breast," c.1200, first attested in Northern and Midlands writing, probably from a Scand. source (not recorded in O.N., but cf. dial. Swed. pappe), from PIE imitative base *pap- "to swell" (cf. L. papilla "nipple," papula "a swelling, pimple;" Lith. papas "nipple").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: PAP
Function: abbreviation
personal automobile policy
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: pap
Pronunciation: 'pap
Function: noun
: a soft food (as for infants)
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

pap (pāp)
n.
Soft or semiliquid food, as for infants.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Computing Dictionary

PAP
1. Password Authentication Protocol.
2. Printer Access Protocol.
(1996-03-23)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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Abbreviations & Acronyms
Pap

  1. Papanicolao smear

  2. Papanicolao test

PAP

  1. Password Authentication Protocol

  2. peroxidase antiperoxidase complex

  3. pulmonary artery pressure

The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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