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sap

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sap¹

  • /sæp/

Rhymes with -æp

Where it comes from

From Middle English sap, from Old English sæp (“juice, sap”), from Proto-West Germanic *sap (“sap, juice”) (compare Dutch sap, German Saft, Icelandic safi), from Proto-Indo-European *sab-, *sap- (“to taste”) (compare Welsh syb-wydd (“fir”), Latin sapa (“must, new wine”), Russian со́пли (sópli, “snivel”), Old Armenian համ (ham, “taste”), Avestan 𐬬𐬌-𐬱𐬁𐬞𐬀 (vi-šāpa, “having poisonous juices”), Sanskrit सबर् (sabar, “juice, nectar”)). More at sage.

sap (“naive person”) is a clipping of sapskull (literally “person with sap in their skull”).

noun saps

  1. uncountable The juice of plants of any kind, especially the ascending and descending juices or circulating fluid essential to nutrition.
  2. uncountable The sapwood, or alburnum, of a tree.
  3. countable, uncountable Any juice.
  4. countable, figuratively, uncountable Vitality. In the preceding centuries the Ashkenazic Synagogue song had been Germanized to a degree that jeopardized not only its distinctive Jewishness but its very existence. In Eastern Europe, on the other hand, the ever-renewed Oriental sap penetrated also into the song.
  5. countable, slang A naive person; a simpleton. Look at the sap mowing our lawn while we pretend our own lawnmower is broken.

    Similar: milksop, saphead

verb saps · sapping · sapped

  1. figuratively, transitive To exhaust the vitality of. Somewhat he knoweth of art magical, yet useth not that art; for it sappeth the life and strength, nor is it held worthy that a Demon should put trust in that art, but rather in his own might and main.
  2. transitive To drain, suck or absorb sap from (a tree, etc.).

sap²

  • /sæp/

Rhymes with -æp

Where it comes from

From French saper (compare Spanish zapar and Italian zappare) from sape (“sort of scythe”), from Late Latin sappa (“sort of mattock”).

The sense evolution of from “subvert by digging” to “weaken” was influenced by the sense above “drain wood of sap” as trench warfare receded from public conscience.

verb saps · sapping · sapped

  1. transitive To make unstable or infirm; to unsettle; to weaken. Ring out the grief that saps the mind[…]
  2. transitive To gradually drain (someone's energy or vitality). to sap one’s conscience
  3. transitive To pierce with saps.
  4. transitive To subvert by digging or wearing away; to mine; to undermine; to destroy the foundation of. Nor safe their dwellings were, for sapped by floods, / Their houses fell upon their household gods.
  5. intransitive, transitive To proceed by mining, or by secretly undermining; to execute saps.

noun saps

  1. A narrow ditch or trench made from the foremost parallel toward the glacis or covert way of a besieged place by digging under cover of gabions, etc.

sap³

  • /sæp/

Rhymes with -æp

Where it comes from

Probably from sapling.

noun saps

  1. US, countable, slang A short wooden club; a leather-covered hand weapon; a blackjack. I risk my whole future, the hatred of the cops and Eddie Mars' gang. I dodge bullets and eat saps.

verb saps · sapping · sapped

  1. slang, transitive To strike with a sap (with a blackjack). [A]s he passes the mouth of a narrow alley two men step out quickly. One of them saps Marlowe expertly — they drag him out of sight.

SAP⁴

Where it comes from

Abbreviation.

proper noun

  1. abbreviation, initialism Initialism of Scientific Advisory Panel
  2. South Africa, abbreviation, initialism Initialism of South African Police
  3. South Africa, abbreviation, initialism, obsolete Initialism of South Africa Party
  4. SAP AG, derived from the German Initialism of Systeme, Anwendungen und Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung, one of the world's largest software companies.

noun SAPs

  1. UK, abbreviation, countable, initialism, uncountable Initialism of statutory adoption pay, payments made by an employer to an employee who is absent from work after the adoption of a child.
  2. US, abbreviation, countable, initialism, uncountable Initialism of special access program
  3. abbreviation, acronym, countable, initialism, uncountable Abbreviation of second audio program
  4. abbreviation, countable, initialism, uncountable Initialism of structural adjustment program
  5. abbreviation, countable, initialism, uncountable Initialism of speech act participant
  6. abbreviation, countable, initialism, uncountable Initialism of superabsorbent polymer

    Similar: superabsorbent polymer, super-absorbent polymer, super absorbent polymer, superabsorbing polymer, super-absorbing polymer, super absorbing polymer

  7. abbreviation, countable, initialism, uncountable Initialism of superabsorbent powder, made of superabsorbent polymer.

    Similar: superabsorbent powder, super-absorbent powder, super absorbent powder, superabsorbing powder, super-absorbing powder, super absorbing powder, superabsorbent polymer powder, super-absorbent polymer powder, super absorbent polymer powder, superabsorbing polymer powder, super-absorbing polymer powder, super absorbing polymer powder

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: drain, cosh, exhaust, use up, tire, run down, muggins, tomfool, fool, saphead, blackjack, juice, milky, jug, flagon, pea

Translations

Every language

noun juice of plant

Españolsavia
한국어즙 jeup, 수액 suaek
日本語樹液 jueki, 汁 shiru
中文樹液 /树液 shùyè, 汁 shī
हिन्दीअर्क ark, अरक arak, निर्यास niryās, गोंद gond
Kiswahiliutomvu
Portuguêsseiva
Françaissève
DeutschSaft
Italianolinfa
Românăsevă
Русскийсок sok
Tiếng Việtnhựa, mủ
العربيةنُسْغ nusḡ, عُصَارَة ʕuṣāra
עבריתשרף saraf

noun sapwood of a tree

Españolalbura
DeutschMantelholz, Splint
Italianoalburno
Русскийза́болонь zábolonʹ

noun slang: naive person

Españolsimplón
Françaisnaïf, nigaud
DeutschEinfaltspinsel, Heulsuse, Simpel
Italianosempliciotto
Românăfraier
Русскийпростак prostak, простофиля prostofilja
עבריתפראייר frayer

verb undermine

Españolzapar, socavar
Portuguêssocavar
Françaissaper, miner
Italianoscalzare, minare
Românăsăpa, submina

verb make unstable; weaken

Italianoindebolire, fiaccare, logorare

verb gradually drain

Deutscherschöpfen, aufzehren
Русскийистощать istoščatʹ, иссуша́ть issušátʹ

noun narrow ditch or trench

Françaissape
DeutschLaufgraben
Русскийса́па sápa

noun leather-covered hand weapon

Françaismatraque
Italianomanganello

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Cite this
MLA

"sap." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/sap. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

sap. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/sap

Chicago

"sap." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/sap.

BibTeX
@misc{sap_2026,
  title = {sap},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/sap},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}