▪ I. clap, n.1
(klæp)
Forms: 3 cleppe (4 klap), 4–7 clappe, 5 clape, 6–8 clapp, 4– clap.
[ME. clappe and cleppe (Ancren Riwle, in sense 9), have the form of derivatives of clap v.1, and of a cognate verb corresp. to MLG. kleppen there referred to. No trace of the word has yet been found in OE.; but the continental langs. have MDu. clap(p, Du. klap, OHG. chlaph, MHG. klapf, all masc., ‘loud sound, clap, smack’, which point to a WGer., and (cf. ON. klapp, in handaklapp neuter) perhaps OTeut. (*klappo-), formed in direct imitation of the sound it expresses. (It is possible that sense 9 is really the earliest, and that branch I. is a subsequent formation of the vb.)]
I. The noise, stroke, or shock.
† 1. An abrupt explosive noise; the noise made by the sudden collision of two hard flat or concave surfaces; the bang or report of a gun. Obs. (except as in next, or as transferred from it).
| 1375 Barbour Bruce x. 401 Thai..soyn has vp thair ledderis set, That maid a clap, quhen the cleket Wes festnyt fast in the kyrnell. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 79 Clappe or grete dynne..strepitus. 1596 Nashe Saffron Walden 78 Ergo was the deadly clap of the peece, or driu'n home stab of the syllogisme. 1641 French Distill. v. (1651) 171 A few..graines being fired will give as great a clap as a musket. |
2. a. esp. The loud explosive noise of thunder; a peal (of thunder). † b. A stroke (of thunder), a lightning-stroke (obs.; cf. sense 5).
| c 1386 Chaucer Pars. T. ¶100 The aire..shal be ful of thonder clappes and lightnings. 1509 Hawes Past. Pleas. xxxvii. x, It thondred loude wyth clappes tempestious. 1588 in Ellis Orig. Lett. ii. 230 III. 134 The Lyghtnynge and Thunder clapp wilbe bothe in a moment. 1591 Spenser Vis. World's Van. 43 The kingly Bird, that beares Ioues thunder-clap. a 1599 Hakluyt Voy. II. ii. 103 (R.) A terrible clap of thunder, which slew foure of our men out right. 1752 Parsons in Phil. Trans. XLVII. 545 With some claps of thunder and lightning at a great distance. 1850 Merivale Rom. Emp. (1865) II. xiv. 133 The news..came upon them like a clap of thunder. |
† 3. Noisy talk, chatter; = clack. Obs. or dial.
| a 1420 Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 88 Who so that hatethe moche clappe or speche Quenchethe malice. [1808 Jamieson, Clep tattle, pert loquacity.] |
4. a. The noise made by striking the palms of the hands together; the act of so doing, esp. in token of applause; an act of applauding, a plaudit; applause. [Cf. ON. handaklapp.]
| 1599 Shakes. Hen. V, v. Prol. 11 Men, Wiues, and Boyes, Whose shouts & claps out-voyce the deep-mouth'd Sea. 1668 T. St. Serfe Epil. Taruga's Wiles 55 All the clap he expects from you is, not to be hist. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 235 ¶9 The Audience is not a little abashed, if they find themselves betrayed into a Clap. 1741 Middleton Cicero (1742) I. v. 411 The whole assembly expressed their satisfaction by claps and applauses. 1779–81 Johnson L.P., Dryden Wks. II. 323 Dryden and Settle had both placed their happiness in the claps of multitudes. 1852 Hawthorne Blithedale Rom. xvii, Then ensued the applause of the spectators, with clap of hands, and thump of sticks. |
b. clap-clap: the sharp sound, continually repeated, made by horses' hooves, applause, or the like.
| 1909 Daily Chron. 22 Oct. 4/7 The sharp clap-clap of the single horse in a hansom. 1922 Joyce Ulysses 271 Bravo! Clapclap. 1929 W. Deeping Roper's Row iv. 38 The clap-clap of a horse's hoofs. 1940 C. S. Lewis Problem of Pain x. 134 The clap-clap of water against the boat's side. |
5. A sounding blow or stroke; properly with a flat surface; a slap; in mod. Sc. esp. a pat.
| ? 14.. Dan Hew, Munk Leicestre (J. Allde) A iiij, He fel down at that clap. 1483 Cath. Angl. 65 Clappe; vbi buffet. 1530 Palsgr. 205/2 Clappe on the heed, sufflet. Clappe with ones hande, bovffee. 1532 More Confut. Tindale Wks. 481/2 He will haue a clappe on the tone cheke or the tother. 1632 E. Coote Eng. Schoolm. (N.), He..drew out his staffe..and hit mee a clap on the scull. 1752 Johnson Rambl. No. 194 ¶2 All the forms of..salutation, from the clap on the shoulder to the humble bow. 1823 Galt Entail I. xxviii. 252 ‘It wasna a pat, but a scud like the clap o' a fir deal.’ |
† 6. fig. A stroke, blow, or shock of misfortune, etc.; a sudden mishap. (Rarely in good sense.) Obs. (See also afterclap.)
| c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 175 Many grete mishappes, many hard travaile, Haf comen vs hard clappes. 1375 Canticum de Creatione 477 in Anglia I. 303 Ffor drede of after clap. ? a 1400 Cato's Mor. 263 in Cursor M. App. iv, Hope ay of gode hap . to come wiþ a gode clap . wiþ-out ani warne. 1513 Douglas æneis x. vi. 68 He the swerd eschapit..Bot nocht at this time so the deidis clap. 1549 Latimer Serm. bef. Edw. VI, iv. (Arb.) 128 As in the tyme of Noe, sodenlye a clappe fell in theyr bosomes. 1575 Churchyard Chippes (1817) 109 Our chiefe, misdouting such a clap..Deuysed fortes. 1662 Fuller Worthies Berkshire I. 113 When our lady falls in our Lord's lap Then may England beware a sad clap. |
† 7. A sudden stroke; in phrases, at a clap, at one clap: at one stroke, at once. in a clap: suddenly, in a moment. Obs. or Sc. (Cf. chop, and Fr. phrases with coup.)
| 1519 W. Horman Vulg. in Promp. Parv. 79 They that serche the ende of a mannys lyfe by nygrymanciars be payed at a clappe. 1549 Latimer Serm. bef. Edw. VI, ii. (Arb.) 60 [He] bryngeth me out a couple of lyes at a clappe. 1580 North Plutarch (1676) 870 It was a good occasion offered them to kill all Cæsar's Enemies at a clap. 1605 Shakes. Lear i. iv. 316 What fiftie of my Followers at a clap? 1637 Rutherford Lett. (1862) I. 451 Our Master will be on us all now in a clap, ere ever we wit. 1679 Hist. Jetzer 19 They shewed him how all the Candles in the Chappel at one clap were lighted. 1768 A. Ross Helenore 66 (Jam.) And in a clap I'll back with something be. |
† 8. A sudden and violent shutting of a door, accompanied with a loud noise and shock; a bang or slam. Obs.
| c 1730 Swift Wks. (1864) II. 353/2 Give the door such a clap as you go out as will shake the whole room. |
II. Applied to various contrivances which make a clapping or rattling noise.
9. a. The clapper of a mill; = clack n. 3, clapper n.1 1. clap and hopper (Sc.): ‘the symbols of investiture in the property of a mill’ (Jam).
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 70 Þe two cheoken beoð þe two grinstones, þe tunge is þe cleppe. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 79 Clappe, or clakke of a mylle, taratantara. 1530 Palsgr. 205/2 Clappe of a myll, clacquet de movlin. 1759 Fountainhall Decisions I. 432 (Jam.) A mill is distinctum tenementum, and requires delivery of the clap and happer. 1786 Burns Addr. Unco Guid. i, The heapet happer's ebbing still, And still the clap plays clatter. 1824 Scott Redgauntlet ch. v, He [the miller] maun wait on clap and hopper, as they say. |
† b. The human tongue. Obs. In stint thy clappe, hold thy clappe, the sense blended at length with that of 3.
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 72 Þeone kuðen heo neuere astunten hore cleppe. c 1386 Chaucer Miller's Prol. 36 The Reve answered and seyde ‘Stynt thi clappe’. c 1420 Chron. Vilod. 839 Ȝe, syre Archebysshop hold þ{supu} þy clappe, For y ȝeve no byleve þerto. 1533 J. Heywood Pardoner & Friar in Hazl. Dodsley I. 231, I say, Wilt thou not yet stint thy clap? 1593 Drayton Eclogue viii, (R.) Away old fool, and learn to use thy tongue. I would thy clap were shut up in my purse. |
† c. The clapper or tongue of a bell.
| 1608–12 Aylesford Churchw. Acc. in Bells Kent (1887) 136 For a clapp of the bell vs...for mendinge a bell clap viiid. |
† d. A rattle used to summon people to church on the last three days of Holy Week, when the bells were not rung; = clapper 5. Sc. ‘A flat instrument of iron, resembling a box, with a tongue and handle, used for making proclamations instead of a drum or hand-bell’ (Jam.). Obs.
| 1566 in E. Peacock Lincolnsh. Ch. Furn. (1866) 42 A sacreing bell broken by m{supt} harbotell two clappes broken by m{supt} vicar. 1701 in Chambers Dom. Ann. Scot. III. 245 Obliged to send clapps, as they call them..(note) An old mode of advertisement..to send an old woman through the streets, with a wooden dish and a stick to clap or beat upon it. |
e. The clapper (n.1 2) of a beggar's clap-dish.
| 1567 Turberv. Ovid's Ep. 39 And banisht begge hir breade with dish and clap. |
10. a. A clack-valve; = clack n. 5. Obs.
| 1626 Capt. Smith Accid. Yng. Seamen 12 The Pumpe, the pumpes-well..the spindle, the boxe, the clap. 1738 Phil. Trans. XL. 232 Two Valves..which open inwardly, and are made like the Claps of other Bellows. |
b. clap of the throat (Sc.): ‘the uvula’ (Jam.).
| 1688 Trial Philip Standifield (Jam.), When the clap of his throat is shut. |
11. Falconry. The lower mandible of a hawk.
| 1486 Bk. St. Albans B j b, The neder parte of hir beke is calde the clape of the hawke. 1575 Turberv. Falconrie 30 Barbe feathers under the clappe of the beake. 1677 N. Cox Gentl. Recreation ii. (1706) 81 By your Hawks frequent opening her Clap and Beak. [In Phillips, Bailey, Johnson, and mod. Dicts.] |
† 12. (See quot.) Obs.
| c 1450 Nominale in Wr.-Wülcker 721 (Nomina rerum ecclesiasticarum). Hoc pedum, a clappe. [Pedum occurs again as ‘a crowche’, or pastoral staff.] |
III. † 13. (Also clap-bill.) A bill to be clapped or stuck on a wall, etc.; a poster. F. affiche. Obs.
| 1699 T. Brown in R. L'Estrange Colloq. Erasm. (1711) 316 They have Clap-bills too, and set up by authority. 1735 Pope Prol. Sat. 216 What though my name stood rubric on the walls, Or plaster'd posts, with claps in capitals? |
14. Farriery. A disease of horses. ? Obs.
| 1684 Lond. Gaz. No. 1960/4 A Chesnut Sorrel Gelding..a clap on the near Leg before. 1727 Bradley Fam. Dict., Clap, a Distemper to which Horses are sometimes liable. |
15. Comb. (In some of these, clap is the stem of the verb.) † clap-bait, a kind of worm used as bait in angling; clap-bill (see 13); clap-cake = clap-bread; clap-door, clap-gate, a small door or gate which shuts when slammed, or which swings to of itself; see also quot. 1888; clap-man, a public crier; † clap-mill, a clapper turned by the wind, etc. for scaring away birds; † clap-shoulder, a. (nonce-wd.), that lays the hand on a person's shoulder (in arrest); clap-sill (Hydraulic Engin.), the sill or lowest part of the frame against which a lock-gate shuts; clap-stick, (a) a watchman's clapper; (b) pl. = clapper n.1 3 c; clap-table = console-table. Also clap-board, -bread, -dish, -net, -trap.
| 1681 J. Chetham Angler's Vade-m. iv. §10 (1689) 39 The other bob, found under a Cow-turd..is also called *clap-bait in some places. 1799 G. Smith Laboratory II. 253 Cow-dung bob, or clap-bait. |
| 1625 K. Long tr. Barclay's Argenis i. v. 12 A secret way..which divided into three wayes, hath as many *clap-doores opening into several fields. |
| 1847–78 Halliwell, *Clap-gate, a small horse-gate. East. 1888 Elworthy West Somerset Word-bk., Clap-gate, a kind of wicket, called in many parts a kissing-gate. Also a small hunting gate just wide enough for a horse to pass. |
| 1613 Markham Eng. Husbandman i. ii. ix. (1635) 159 On the toppes of those poales you shall place certaine *Clapp-milles, made of broken trenchers joyned together like sayles. 1620 ― Farew. Husb. ii. xvii. (1668) 75 Clap-mils..which make a great noise. |
| 1630 J. Taylor (Water P.) Wks. (N.), *Clap-shoulder serjeants..bringing men in thrall. |
| 1834–39 Southey Doctor I. (D.), He was Not disturbed..by the watchmen's rappers or *clap-sticks. 1946 Electronic Engin. XVIII. 309 The professional ‘clap-sticks’ should be used to mark the beginning of a ‘take’. |
| c 1702 C. Fiennes Journeys (1947) iv. x. 358 A *clap table under the large looking-glass between the windows. 1955 R. Fastnedge Eng. Furnit. Styles v. 127 The introduction of the console, originally called a ‘clap’ table, dated from the first years of the [18th] century. |
▪ II. clap, n.2 Obs. in polite use.
(klæp)
[Of uncertain origin. Cf. OF. ‘clapoir, bosse, bubo, panus inguinis’; ‘clapoire, clapier, lieu de débauche, maladie q'on y attrape’.]
a. Gonorrhœa.
| 1587 Myrr. Mag., Malin iii, Before they get the Clap. a 1605 Montgomerie Flyting 312 The clape and the canker. 1851 Mayne Exp. Lex., Clap, vulgar name for the disease Baptorrhœa. 1881 in Syd. Soc. Lex. 1919 Wine, Women & War (1926) 306 Physical exam—crabs, cooties and clap. Scared to death, but O.K. 1967 A. Diment Dolly Dolly Spy iii. 34 Rocky Kilmarry is about as good for you as a dose of clap. |
b. With a, and pl.
| c 1645 Howell Lett. (1650) I. 452 Claps at Court. 1663 Butler Hud. i. i. 64. Ibid. ii. i. 246 Claps and dice. Ibid. ii. iii. 967. 1681 Trial S. Colledge 72 He [Oates] did confess that he had an old Clap. 1691 Wood Ath. Oxon. II. 295 A Clap did usher Davenant to his grave. 1709 Swift Adv. Relig. Wks. 1755 II. i. 99. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 77 ¶1. 1735 Pope Donne Sat. ii. 47 A clap. 1738 Johnson London 114 They sing, they dance, clean shoes, or cure a clap. 1761 Churchill Rosciad 1 His claps. 1803 Med. Jrnl. IX. 572 A clap. 1806 Ibid. XV. 418 Repeated claps. |
c. Comb., as clap-doctor.
| 1710 Steele & Addison Tatler No. 260 ¶5 He was the first Clap Doctor that I meet with in History. |
▪ III. clap, v.1
(klæp)
Forms: (1 clappian), 3–4 clappen, 4–7 clappe, (5 cleppyn, clape, 8 Sc. clep), 6– clap. pa. tense and pple. 3–6 clapte, 5 clappid, (7–8 claped, clap'd, clap't, 7–9 clapp'd), 4– clapped, 6– clapt (klæpt).
[ME. clappen, OE. type *clappian (Somner has clappan from some unspecified source), corresp. to MLG., MDu., LG., Du. (also mod.G.) klappen, OHG. chlaphôn, MHG. and mod.Ger. klapfen; these point to a common WGer. type witnessing, with ON. klappa (Sw. klappa, Du. klappe), to an OTeut. *klappôjan, vb. intr., f. *klappo- clap n.1 ME. cleppen corresponds formally to another type *klappjan, appearing in MLG. and MDu. kleppen (whence mod.G. kleppen, kläppen), HG. kläpfen; cf. cleppe under clap n. The primitive Teutonic sense is that of ‘make a clap or explosive sound’, whence a wide range of derivative senses in the various languages. If the word was not preserved in OE., it may have re-entered ME. from ON.; and, in any case, some of the senses are prob. of Norse origin; the mod. Scandinavian langs. have it with the same range of meaning as in Eng., also with the sense ‘pat endearingly’, as in Sc. and north. dial. (sense 9.)]
I. Of noise alone.
1. a. intr. To make the hard explosive noise described under clap n.1 Said of agents, instruments, thunder, etc. (Now chiefly dial.)
| 1509 Barclay Shyp of Folys (1874) I. 222 Clappynge with their helys in churche. 1530 Palsgr. 485/2, I clappe, I make noyse, as the clapper of a myll, je clacque. 1577–87 Holinshed Chron. III. 1219/2 The small shot clapt suddenly round about the house. 1579 Gosson Sch. Abuse (Arb.) 59 The boulte is falne ere the Ayre clap. 1742 R. Blair Grave 34 Doors creak, and windows clap. 1847 Tennyson Princ. ii. 209. 1848 Thackeray Bk. Snobs xxxv, We went clapping up a clean stone backstair. |
b. Formerly said of a bell; to tinkle.
| c 1440 Promp. Parv. 81 Cleppyn or clynchyn [1499 clippyn or clynkyn], tinnio. [See also clapping.] |
2. intr. To talk loudly, chatter, prate.
| 1393 Gower Conf. I. 122 There maie nothinge his tonge daunt That he ne clappeth as a belle. 1406 Hoccleve Misrule 394 That to myself thus longe Clappid have I! 1471 Ripley Comp. Alch. v. xxiv. in Ashm. (1652) 154 How eloquently, de materia prima they clape. 1557 Tottell's Misc. (Arb.) 135 O Euyll tonges, which clap at euery winde. 1562 J. Heywood Prov. & Epigr. (1867) 107 Hir tounge was clappyng lyke a paten. [1722 Ramsay Three Bonnets i. 2 To heed that clepping thing ca'd conscience.] 1938 G. Greene Brighton Rock v. i. 189 ‘We better say something, Pinkie. You know the kind of thing—he was a real good old pal, we sympathise with what you feel.’ ‘What are you clapping about?’ |
| trans. c 1315 Shoreham Poems 135 Aȝen hy clappeth thys and that. c 1386 Chaucer Can. Yeom. Prol. & T. 412 [It] Nis nat good what so men clappe or crye. 1393 Gower Conf. II. 282 All that thou herest thou shalt telle And clappe it out as doth a belle. |
II. Of making the noise by particular actions.
† 3. intr. To strike so as to make a noise; to rap, knock (e.g. at a door). Obs.
| c 1386 Chaucer Friar's T. 281 This sompnour clapped at the widowes gate. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts (1673) 309 Beat all the windy places with a good hasell wand, or with both your hands, clapping upon the places puffed up with wind. 1698 Walker in Phil. Trans. XX. 433, I clapt every Second of Time Ten or Fifteen times together. |
4. To shut (as a door or window) with a clap or explosive noise; to bang, slam. a. intr. Said of a door, window, etc. arch.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 807 And þai [jaws] clappe shall full clene, & neuer vnclose aftur. c 1470 Harding Chron. lxxvi. vi, So sodenly doores and wyndowes al clapped With hydeous noyce. 1611 Speed Hist. Gt. Brit. ix. xviii. (1632) 914 A doore clapped, and in came rushing men in harnesse. 1656 H. More Antid. Ath. ii. xii. (1712) 79 The upper-lid [of the eye] presently claps down. 1765 H. Walpole Otranto i. (1798) 25 ‘What noise was that’? said Manfred..‘A door clapped’, said the peasant. 1842 Tennyson Day-Dream, Revival i, There rose a noise of..doors that clapt. |
b. trans. (Often with to). arch. or dial.
| c 1386 Chaucer Miller's T. 554 ‘Te-hee’! quoth sche, and clapt the wyndow to. 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, ii. iv. 305 Hostesse, clap to the doores. 1596 Spenser F.Q. iii. xii. 3 A stormy whirlwind blew Throughout the house, that clapped every dore. 1765 H. Walpole Otranto i. (1798) 18 [He] clapped the door against the terrified Matilda. 1844 Dickens Mart. Chuz. ix, He clapped down the window. |
5. a. trans. To strike the palms of the hands together with noise (usually, in token of applause, encouragement, or delight; formerly, also, in derision; also, as a signal, etc.). [An earlier const. connecting this with 3 may have been to clap with the hands.]
| c 1386 Chaucer Frankl. T. 475 Whan this Maister..Saugh it was tyme he clapte hise handes. a 1400 Octouian 569 Tho gan Florence her handys clappe For that tydyng. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 79 Clappyn hondys togedyr for ioy or for sorowe, complodo. 1535 Coverdale Job xxvii. 23 Than clappe men their hondes at him, yee and ieast of him. Ibid. Ps. xcviii. 8 Let the floudes clappe their hondes. a 1656 Bp. Hall Rem. Wks. (1660) 61 To clap their hands (as boyes are wont to do in dog-fights). 1782 Priestley Corrupt. Chr. II. viii. 124 Preachers..even hired persons to clap their hands. 1841 Lane Arab. Nts. (Routl.) 232 He clapped his hands, when several slaves instantly appeared. |
b. intr. (‘hands’ not being expressed): To applaud by clapping hands.
| 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, Epil 4 All the best men are ours; for 'tis ill hap, If they hold, when their Ladies bid 'em clap. 1676 Marvell Mr. Smirke 5 His little party..had posted themselves at every corner to feigne a more numerous applause: but clap'd out of time. 1721 D'Urfey Two Qu. Brentford ii. in New Opera's 33 If the Audience should chance to Clap here. 1853 Kingsley Hypatia xxii. 277 Ladies..waved their hands..and clapped and shouted to the gladiators. |
c. trans. (elliptically) To clap the hands at, or in honour of, applaud (a person, performance, etc.) with claps. (Rarely, to drive away, out, etc. by clapping the hands.)
| c 1555 Harpsfield Divorce Hen. VIII (1878) 121 The which John Bacon was whistled and clapped out of Rome. 1601 Shakes. Jul. C. i. ii. 261 If the tag-ragge people did not clap him, and hisse him, according as he pleas'd, and displeas'd them. 1669 Pepys Diary 2 Feb., Indeed it was very finely sung, so as to make the whole house clap her. 1713 Eusden Pref. Verses Addison's Cato, Crowds the sentiments of every line Impartial clap'd. 1820 Southey Wesley II. 488 A few bucks clapped and encored him. |
† d. (See quot.)
| 1592 Greene Art Conny-catch. ii. 6 Hee bargained..& bought him..and the horse-stealer clapt him good lucke. |
III. Of actions incidentally accompanied by the noise.
6. trans. To strike, hit, knock, beat, with sounding blows. Obs. or arch. (To clap a dish (quot. 1670): cf. clap-dish.)
| c 1300 Havelok 1814 [He] clapte him on þe crune, So þat he stan-ded fel þor dune. 1382 Wyclif Judg. vii. 19 Thei bigunnen with trompis to cryen, and clappen [1388 to bete] togidre bitwix hem seluen the wyn pottis. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 79 Clappyn' or knokkyn, pulso. 1530 Palsgr. 485/2, I clappe, I stryke, je frappe. Clappe hym on the backe a good stroke, there is a fysshe bone in his throte. 1632 Lithgow Trav. x. 473 [He] clapd mee on the face with his foote. 1669 Worlidge Syst. Agric. ix. §3 (1681) 195 Clap the empty Hive again, and get as many Bees out as you can. 1670 Ray Proverbs 186 (R.) He claps his dish at a wrong man's door. |
† 7. a. To strike (hands) reciprocally, in token of a bargain. Obs.
| 1599 Shakes. Hen. V, v. ii. 133 Giue me your answer, yfaith doe, and so clap hands, and a bargaine. 1607 Dekker Northw. Hoe iv. Wks. 1873 III. 56 Green. Ist a bargen. Omn. And hands clapt vpon it. 1614 T. Adams Devil's Banquet 240 We neuer clap'd them the hand of couenant. |
b. Hence app. the following:—
| 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. i. ii. 104 Ere I could make thee open thy white Hand: And [folio A] clap thy selfe my Loue. |
8. Of a bird: To move (the wings) forcibly and repeatedly, so that they strike each other, the sides, or the air; to flap. Also fig.
| c 1400 Mandeville xx. 219 Dyverse foules..clappyng here Wenges to gydere. 1660 Hist. Indep. iv. 48 Having proceeded on thus far successfully, they now begin to clap their wings as invincible. a 1700 Dryden Cock & Fox 666 This chanticleer..Stood high upon his toes, and clapped his wings. 1832 Tennyson Dream Fair Women 180 The crested bird That claps his wings at dawn. |
9. a. To slap with the palm of the hand, in token of approval or encouragement; esp. in to clap (a person) on the back (also fig.). In north. dial. (expressing gentler action) to pat in token of endearment, to pat fondly. (So in Icel. and Da.)
| c 1530 Ld. Berners Arth. Lyt. Bryt. (1814) 328 These lusty damoyselles playnge..wyth these fresshe yonge lusty knightes, clappynge theym on the backes with theyr whyte handes. 1580 Baret Alv. K 78 To kisse one, or clap her on the lips, as we say merrily. 1595 Duncan App. Etymol., Demulceo, to clap, to straike with the hand. a 1605 Montgomerie Sonn. xxviii. 4 A louing dog was of his maister fane..His courteous maister clappit him agane. 1684 Baxter Answ. Theol. Dial. 28 Clapping on the back with encouragement the Drunkards. 1719 D'Urfey Pills (1872) III. 219 She clapped his cheeks, and curled his hair. 1791 Boswell Johnson xlix, Tom Davies clapped him on the back to encourage him. 1842 Tennyson Dora 130 His grandsire..clapt him on the hands and on the cheeks, Like one that lov'd him. 1886 Stevenson Treasure Isl. ii. xii. 97 Clapping me in the friendliest way upon the shoulder. |
b. To slap or strike with a flat surface, so as to smooth or flatten; to pat. So to clap out. Chiefly north.
| 1550 Coverdale Spir. Perle vi. (1588) 75 As the dier, blecher, or the laundresse washeth, beateth, lompeth and clappeth the foule..clothes. 1750 E. Smith Compl. Housewife 333 Lay them [cloths] on a table, and clap them. 1807 Southey Espriella's Lett. (1814) II. 137 The dough being laid on a round board..she clapped it out with her hands, till it covered the board. 1824 Mrs. Sherwood Waste Not i. 19 She was made to iron, and plait, and stamp and clap, and clear-starch. |
IV. Of action resembling the preceding in its prompt energy, but with no notion of noise.
10. trans. a. To apply, place, put, set, or ‘stick’, with promptness and effect: properly with the implication that the object in question is promptly brought flat and close to the other surface, but this notion often disappears (see esp. the quotations under b), and the word becomes a vivid or picturesque equivalent of ‘put’, ‘place’, with the implication of energetic action easily performed. This notion is also present in senses 11–15. Cf. chop v.1 7, stick v.
| 1559 Dr. Fecknam in Strype Ann. Ref. I. App. ix. 62 With a little piece of paper clappid over the..wordes. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 388 The King clapped his hands upon his shoulder and arested him. 1583 Stanyhurst æneis ii. (Arb.) 56 Let vs..Grecian armour..Al clap on oure bodyes. 1592 Shakes. Rom. & Jul. iii. i. 6 [He] claps me his Sword vpon the Table, and sayes, God send me no need of thee. 1598 ― Merry W. ii. ii. 142 Clap on more sailes, pursue. 1605 Play Stucley in Sch. Shaks. (1878) 223 The uncivil Lord..clapt irons on my heels. 1654 Trapp Comm. Esther i. 20 As a man..clappeth on a plaister. 1670–98 R. Lassels Voy. Italy II. 89 Clapping himself down upon the ground. 1709 Addison Tatler No. 20 ¶2 She clap'd her Fan before her Face. 1710 ― Whig Exam. No. 1 ¶13 He clapped spurs to his horse. 1712 ― Spect. No. 445 ¶1 A sheet..that must have this new Imprimatur clapt upon it. 1716 Lady M. W. Montague Lett. I. iii. 12 The parson clapped on a broad⁓brimmed hat. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) I. 300 If we clap our hand upon the mouth of a vessel. 1790 T. Bewick Quadrupeds (1807) 40 If any person come near the calves, they clap their heads close to the ground. 1806–7 J. Beresford Miseries Hum. Life (1826) vi. Introd., Wild beasts with saddles clapped on their backs and so called Horses. 1826 Sister's Gift 10 He..mounted, clapped to his spurs, and set off a galloping. 1833 Marryat P. Simple xlvi, We clapped on the royals to follow her. 1865 Carlyle Fredk. Gt. VI. xvi. xii. 284 Rücker claps-on the Town-seal. |
b. (See sense a above.)
| 1614 T. Adams Devil's Banquet 151 An vnder-hand Fee clapt in the left hand of a Magistrate. 1651–3 Jer. Taylor Serm. (1678) 99 These are the clouds, the Devil claps between Heaven and Us. 1655 Francion x. 1 To heap words on words..only clapping in of some odd adventures to delight the Idiots. 1667 Earl of Orrery State Lett. (1743) II. 121, I would..clap into Kilmallock..good parties of the militia. 1676 C. Hatton in Hatton Corr. (1878) 141 A man clapt his head out at a window. 1683 Tryon Way to Health 315 They presently clap more Victuals or Drink into their Mouthes. 1699 W. Dampier Voy. II. viii. 155, I clapt the Helm a Starboard. 1807 Crabbe Par. Reg. iii. 850, I have nappy beer; Clap that within. 1807–8 Syd. Smith Plymley's Lett. Wks. 1859 II. 167/2 Their prophecies of ruin..will be clapped into the notes of some quaint history. 1873 Browning Red Cotton Night-Cap Country 234 An angel caught you up and clapped you down. |
c. ellipt. = ‘clap an arrow’.
| 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, iii. ii. 51 Hee drew a good Bow..hee shot a fine shoote..hee would haue clapt in the Clowt at Twelue-score. |
† d. to clap hold of: to lay hold of promptly.
| 1583 Babington Commandm. viii. Wks. (1637) 84 To clappe hold of Jesus Christ. 1681 R. Knox Hist. Ceylon 29 He claps hold of them by a kind of peg that growes on his tayl. |
† e. Naut. to clap (a vessel) aboard, on board: to lay her on board, fall aboard of her, board her (see aboard 1 d, board n. 12 c, board v. 1.) Obs.
| 1583 T. Stocker Warres Lowe Countries i. 88 b, Foure or fiue..[men of warre] began to assayle her [the Gally] to haue clapt her a bord. 1671 Lond. Gaz. No. 630/1 Finding the said ship a great way a sterne of the men of Warr, they clapped her on board, and..made themselves Masters of her. a 1688 Villiers (Dk. Buckhm.) Chances (1714) 116 All your Discretion Is not yet lost; this was well clap'd aboard. 1726 G. Shelvocke Voy. round W. (1757) ix. 286 They clapped her on board, but not holding fast, they fell astern. |
f. to clap eyes on: to get a sight of. colloq.
| 1838 Dickens O. Twist xxvi, You might never have clapped eyes upon the boy. 1887 Besant The World went x. 80, I never clapped eyes on you before to my knowledge. |
11. esp. To put (with promptitude or high-handedness) in prison or custody; to imprison, confine. Also simply to clap up († to clap fast): ‘to imprison with little formality or delay’ (J.).
| 1515 Barclay Egloges i. (1570) A v/4 Then art thou clapped in the Flete or Clinke. 1581 Marbeck Bk. of Notes 667 The King caused him to be clapt in prison. 1583 Stubbes Anat. Abus. ii. 41 They are sometimes sent to prison, clapt in irons, manicled. 1593 Shakes. 2 Hen. VI, i. iv. 53 Let them be clapt vp close. a 1618 Raleigh Rem. (1644) 73 Wee'le clap you up, and you shall sue to us ere you get out. 1697 Potter Antiq. Greece i. xxvi. (1715) 152 Let him be clapt up in Gaol till he pays the whole. 1720 De Foe Capt. Singleton xviii. (1840) 306 Certain nobles whom the king had clapped up. 1777 Robertson Hist. Amer. (1778) II. v. 82 He was..clapt in fetters. 1840 Thackeray Catherine v, What did the creditors do but clap my gay gentleman into Shrewsbury gaol. 1843 Carlyle Past & Pr. (1858) 125 Some were clapt in prison. |
12. fig. To impose as with authority. (Cf. quot. 1712 in 10 a.) a. To impose, place, set, station (a sentinel, guard, workman, attendant) upon, on, etc. arch.
| 1705 Luttrell Brief Rel. (1857) V. 623 They have centinells clapt upon them to prevent a duel. 1708 Penn in Pa. Hist. Soc. Mem. X. 270 Clap somebody upon them, as servants for me. a 1718 ― Life Wks. I. 36 A Guard was there clapt upon him. 1768 Goldsm. Good-n. Man i. i, To arrest him for that very debt: to clap an officer upon him. 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1789), Clap on here twenty hands! the order from an officer for twenty men to be employed on some particular duty. 1820 Byron Let. to Moore 9 Dec., I have..clapt sentinels at the doors. |
b. fig. To impose or lay (a liability, action, writ, duty, etc.); to impose or apply (a name, etc.); † to lay the blame or responsibility of (obs.). Const. on or upon.
| 1609 Ev. Woman in Hum. ii. i. in Bullen O.Pl. IV, Now thou hitst the finger right Upon the Shoulder of Ingratitude. Thou hast clapt an action of flat felony. 1613 Shakes. Hen. VIII, v. iv. 84 On your heads [Ile] Clap round Fines for neglect. 1641 J. Jackson True Evang. T. i. 25 He set on fire the Edifices..and..clapt the wicked fact upon the backs of Christians. 1690 W. Walker Idiomat. Anglo-Lat. 36 I'll clap a writ on your back. 1690 Locke Hum. Und. iii. x. §5 One who would speak thus..would..have clap'd upon him one of..two Names. 1847 Emerson Repr. Men, Plato Wks. (Bohn) I. 305 He has clapped copyright on the world. 1875 Whitney Life Lang. viii. 137 A title..selected and made ready for clapping upon it. 1884 Manch. Exam. 1 Nov. 5/2 He would have us clap import duties on the manufactures of other countries. |
13. † a. To put or stick together, construct or put up, hastily or without much care. Obs.
| 1622–62 Heylyn Cosmogr. ii. (1682) 78 The Buildings..clapt up together without Art, and of little beauty. 1649 Milton Eikon. i. 10 The lip-work of every Prelatical Liturgist, clapt together and quilted out of Scripture phrase. 1662 Gerbier Princ. 28 Belconies clapt up in the old Wall. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 86 ¶5 As bad a System of Features as ever was clapped together. |
b. to clap up: to make, settle, or concoct hastily (a match, agreement, etc.); ‘to complete suddenly without much precaution’ (J.). (Rarely without up.) arch.
| 1595 Shakes. John iii. i. 235 To clap this royall bargaine vp of peace. 1596 ― Tam. Shr. ii. i. 327 Was euer match clapt vp so sodainly? 1633 Ford 'Tis Pity iii. i, There is no way but to clap up a marriage in hugger-mugger. 1665 Surv. Aff. Netherl. 166 They can clap a League with the Turk. 1676 Temple Let. Sir J. Williamson Wks. 1731 II. 371 To clap up an Agreement with Denmark, for arming a joint Fleet next Summer. 1755 Smollett Quix. (1803) II. 151 The grand Signior..clapped up a peace with the Venetians. 1883 J. Payne 1001 Nights VI. 325 Go this very day..and clap up an acquaintance with him. |
14. a. intr. (for refl.) To press, get, ‘stick’, or lie close (to, in, etc. any thing). Now chiefly Sc.
| 1590 Marlowe Edw. II, iii. iii, I'll clap so close Among the lords of France. 1608 Middleton Trick to Catch ii. i, Clap sure to him widow. 1656 Sanderson Serm. (1689) Pref. 87 Clap in with him that getteth the day. 1885 Pall Mall G. 29 Oct. 4/2 The young deer ‘clap’ in their forms, and rise only when the eye is directly upon them. (Cf. 10 a, quot. 1790.) |
† b. Naut. to clap on (or by) a wind: to bring the ship's head closer to windward, sail nearer to the wind. Obs.
| 1627 Smith Seaman's Gram. xii. 57 If hee clap close by a wind. 1673 Retaking St. Helena in Arb. Garner I. 62 They clapped by a wind, and we after them. 1708 Lond. Gaz. No. 4422/7 They clapp'd again upon a Wind and left us. 1726 G. Shelvocke Voy. round World 307 Fearing she was one of the Enemy's men of war, I clapp'd on a wind. |
† 15. a. intr. (for refl. = to clap oneself anywhere): To come or go with sudden and decisive motion, throw oneself, drop, fall, strike in. Obs. exc. as in c. (Cf. chop v.1 8.)
| 1603 Knolles Hist. Turks (1621) 730 Their horsemen..clapt behind them, to have there charged them. c 1610 Sir J. Melvil Mem. (1735) 5 They clapped again about you and kept you two Years a captive. 1655 W. Gurnall Chr. in Arm. v. §4. (1669) 93/2 Thou clappest down on thy seat to sleep. 1672 Marvell Reh. Transp. i. 63 Hearing of a vacancy with a Noble-man, he clap'd in, and easily obtained to be his Chaplain. 1719 De Foe Crusoe (1840) II. v. 106 To take the advantage and clap in between them and their boats. 1750 R. Pultock P. Wilkins xxi. (1883) 61/2 Whether to take her first, and then catch the chickens, or to let her go off, and then clap upon them. |
† b. fig. ‘To enter with alacrity and briskness upon anything’ (J.); to strike into. Obs.
| 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. v. iii. 11 Come, sit, sit, and a song..Shal we clap into't roundly. 1603 ― Meas. for M. iv. iii. 43 Truly Sir, I would desire you to clap into your prayers. |
c. absol. to clap on: to apply oneself with energy to a task; to ‘set to’. colloq.
| 1852 Surtees Sponge's Sp. Tour xxviii. 170 Why didn't he clap on, and try to catch up the hounds at a check? 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Who says Amen? Who will clap on with a will? |
V. Erroneous uses, due to confusion.
† 16. = clip, clasp, embrace.
| a 1400–50 Alexander 384 Þen kisses he kenely þe quene · & clappis in armes. Ibid. 3237, and 5252. |
† 17. = clepe, call.
| 1649 G. Daniel Trinarch., Hen. IV, cclxix, Hee calls 'em in..And claps the better Runners by their Names. |
¶ Combinations, in which the vb.-stem is the first element: see clap n.1 15.
▪ IV. clap, v.2 Obs. in polite use.
(klæp)
[f. clap n.2]
trans. To infect with clap. Also fig.
| 1658 Osborn Jas. I (1673) 514 Atropos clapt him, a Pox on the Drab! 1672–6 Wiseman Surgery (J.), If the patient hath been clapt. a 1680 Butler Rem. (1759) I. 249 [They] had ne'er been clap'd with a poetic Itch. 1683 T. Hunt Def. Charter Lond. 30 His understanding is clapt. 1738 Laws of Chance Pref. 9 It is hardly 1 to 10..that a Town-Spark of that Age has not been clap'd. |