lap

v. t. [ OE. lappen to fold (see Lap, n.); cf. also OE. wlappen, perh. another form of wrappen, E, wrap. ] 1. To fold; to bend and lay over or on something; as, to lap a piece of cloth. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To wrap or wind around something. [ 1913 Webster ]

About the paper . . . I lapped several times a slender thread of very black silk. Sir I. Newton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To infold; to hold as in one's lap; to cherish. [ 1913 Webster ]

Her garment spreads, and laps him in the folds. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To lay or place over anything so as to partly or wholly cover it; as, to lap one shingle over another; to lay together one partly over another; as, to lap weather-boards; also, to be partly over, or by the side of (something); as, the hinder boat lapped the foremost one. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Carding & Spinning) To lay together one over another, as fleeces or slivers for further working. [ 1913 Webster ]

To lap boards,
shingles, etc., to lay one partly over another. --
To lap timbers, to unite them in such a way as to preserve the same breadth and depth throughout, as by scarfing. Weale. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lapped p. pr. & vb. n. Lapping. ] 1. To rest or recline in a lap, or as in a lap. [ 1913 Webster ]

To lap his head on lady's breast. Praed. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To cut or polish with a lap, as glass, gems, cutlery, etc. See 1st Lap, 10. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To be turned or folded; to lie partly upon or by the side of something, or of one another; as, the cloth laps back; the boats lap; the edges lap. [ 1913 Webster ]

The upper wings are opacous; at their hinder ends, where they lap over, transparent, like the wing of a flay. Grew. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ OE. lappen, lapen, AS. lapian; akin to LG. lappen, OHG. laffan, Icel. lepja, Dan. lade, Sw. läppja, L. lambere; cf. Gr. &unr_;, W. llepio. Cf. Lambent. ] 1. To take up drink or food with the tongue; to drink or feed by licking up something. [ 1913 Webster ]

The dogs by the River Nilus's side, being thirsty, lap hastily as they run along the shore. Sir K. Digby. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To make a sound like that produced by taking up drink with the tongue. [ 1913 Webster ]

I heard the ripple washing in the reeds,
And the wild water lapping on the crag. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To take into the mouth with the tongue; to lick up with a quick motion of the tongue. [ 1913 Webster ]

They 'II take suggestion as a cat laps milk. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The act of lapping with, or as with, the tongue; as, to take anything into the mouth with a lap. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The sound of lapping. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Gr. &unr_; loins + &unr_; tumor. ] (Med.) A rupture or hernia in the lumbar regions. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Med.) A slender endoscope, containing fiber-optic viewing capability and miniature surgical devices, which can be inserted through a small incision in the abdominal wall, allowing a surgeon to perform minor surgery with minimal damage to the abdominal muscles. [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]