lap 
There was naught to show that It was water but . . . 
now and then a faint tap and a dying buliblo round the 
edge. K. L. Utevetuon, Merry Men. 
2. That which in lickod up, as porridge. Com- 
pare cat-ln/i. [Slung.] 
Here's panmun, and lap, and good poplars of yarrum. 
llrome, Jovial Crew, Ii. (SIM IK). 
lap 2 (lap), n. [Early mod. E. lappe, < ME. 
l<il>l; < AS. lirppa, the edge or skirt of a gar- 
ment, lobe of tno oar, a detached portion, a 
district, = OFries. lappn = MD. lappe, D. lap 
= MLO. lappe = O. lappen = 8w. lapp = Dan. 
ln/i, a lap, loose hanging portion, shred ; cf. G. 
lappen, hang loose, = Icel. Ittpn, hang down; 
L. lulii, fall, > litpsii*. a falling (gee labent, 
lapse) ; Skt. -\/ lamb, ramb, hang down. Cf. 
lop 1 , lop 2 .] If. A flap or loosely hanging part 
of a thing; a loose border or fold. 
Wyth lappez large I wot & I wene, 
Dubbed with double pvrle * dyste. 
Alliterative Poems (ed. Morris), I. 201. 
A golden Banner, in whose stately lap 
His Lord's Almighty Name wide open flew. 
J. Beaumont, Psyche, il. 122. 
2f. The loose part of a coat ; the skirt of a gar- 
ment ; a lappet. 
With the lappe of her garnemente iplifted in a frounce 
she dried myn iyen, that weren full of the wawes of my 
wepynges. Chaucer, Boethius, i. 
At first he tells a He with some shame and reluctancy. 
. . . For then, if he cuts off but a lap of Truth's garment, 
his heart smites him. Fuller. 
3. The front part of the skirt of a garment; 
that part of the clothing that lies loosely on the 
thighs and knees when a person sits down ; es- 
pecially, this part of the clothing, or an apron, 
as used to hold or contain something. 
To the tree she goth full hastily, 
And on this faucon loketh pitously, 
And held hir lappe abrood, for wel she wlste 
The faucon moste fallen fro the twiste, 
When that it swooneth next, for lakke of blood. 
Chaucer, Squire's Tale, 1. 433. 
And one . . . found a wild vine, and gathered thereof 
of gourds his lap full. 2 KL iv. 39. 
4. The part of the body covered by the front 
part of the skirts of one's garments or by an 
apron, especially when in a sitting posture: 
often used with special reference to nursing or 
cherishing: as, to hold a child in one's lap. 
Ich -MM h hym sit tr as he a syre were, 
At Mill- manere ese in Abrahammes lappe. 
Piers Plowman (C), ix. 283. 
His walet lay byforn him in his lappe. 
Chaucer, Gen. ProL to C. T., L 686. 
I will live in thy heart, die in thy lap, and be burled in 
thy eyes. Hhaf.. Much Ado, v. >. 100. 
6. In textile manitf. See lapping^, 3. 6. Fig- 
uratively, anything which supports and cher- 
ishes ; any retreat in which something rests or 
reposes; shelter; abode: as, the lap of earth; 
the lap of luxury. 
Who are the violeU now, 
That strew the green lap of the new come spring? 
Sha*., Rich. II. , T. 2. 47. 
Or the flowery lap 
Of some Irrlguons valley spread her store. 
Milton, P. L., iv. 254. 
Here rests his head upon the lap of earth. Gray, Elegy. 
lap 8 (lap), v.; pret. and pp. lapped, ppr. lapping. 
[Early mod. E. lappe, < ME. lappen, earlier 
irlappcn, in another form wrappen, > E. wrap, 
which is thus a doublet of lap 8 : see wrap. Cf . 
i -Hi-flop, develop, through F. from the same nit. 
source.] I. trans. 1. To wrap or twist round. 
With a great deal of cloth lapped about him like a scarf. 
/;. Juimin, Bartholomew Fair, v. 3. 
About the paper ... I lapped several times a slender 
thread. Ifewton. (Latham.) 
2. To wrap or infold ; involve. 
Either laptted other, ful loneli in armes. 
William <rf Palerne (E. E. T. 9.X 1. 1908. 
And whanne the bodi was takun, Joseph lappide it in a 
ili-iii- sendel and leide it in his newe biriel. 
Wycl\f, Mat. xxvii. 59. 
A kind token of your favour lapf up in a parenthesis. 
Milton, Animadversions. 
As lapped in thought I used to lie 
And gjizt 1 into the summer sky. 
Longfellow, Voices of the Night, Prelude. 
8. To fold; bend and lay one part or fold of 
over another: as, to lap a piece of cloth. 
Ne suffred she the Middayes scorching powre, 
Ne the sharp N'ortherne wind tlu-mm to showre ; 
But lapped up her silken leaves most chayre. 
Spenter, V. Q., III. v. 61. 
4. To lay in such a way as to cover a part of 
something underneath: cause to overlap: as, 
to lap shingles or slates on a roof. 5f. To 
feign; invent. 
211 
3351 
Ffor no luff hit Is, Idly, thou lappis thles tales, 
But for treason iV trayn, trust we non other. 
Destruction, uj Troy (E. E. T. si.), 1. 11302. 
6. To cut or polish with a lap : as, to lap a gem. 
See lap 3 , n., 5. 
Some parts of the lock-work are also lapped upon a re- 
volving leaden surface plate, with emery and water, and 
always for dead level polishing. 
W. W. Greener, The Gun, p. 252. 
Lapped joint. Same as lap-joint. 
If. intrant. To extend over a part of some- 
thing else; overlap. To lap over, to cover or partly 
cover, by being folded or turned upon ; extend beyond. 
The upper wings are opacous : at their hinder ends, 
where they lap oner, transparent like the wing of a fly. 
lap 3 (lap), ii. [< lapS, v. In some uses appar. 
confused with lap*, n.] If. A covering. 
And alle ledls me lowttede that lengede In erthe, 
And now es lefte me no lappe my lyghaui to hele. 
Morte Arthure (E. E. T. 8.), L 3287. 
2. The part of one body which lies on and cov- 
ers part of another ; the amount or extent of 
such covering : as, the lap of a slate in roofing. 
3. In the steam-engine, the space over which 
a slide-valve travels after the closing of the 
steam-passage to or from the cylinder. The in- 
side lap Is the space traversed by the slide-valve after It 
has passed the inlet-port and cut off the supply of steam 
from the cylinder, and is intended to cause the engine to 
do a part of its work by expansion. The outside lap is the 
space traversed by the valve before the end of the stroke, 
after it has shut off the exhaust of steam. It leaves a por- 
tion of vapor confined within the cylinder to act as an 
elastic cushion against the down stroke of the piston. K. 
II Knitjht. 
Expansive working, however, becomes possible when 
we give the valve what Is called lap, by making it pro- 
ject over the edges of the steam ports. 
Eneye. Brit., XXII. 601. 
4. A thick roll or sheet of cotton, wool, or the 
like, in various stages of manufacture. 
The felt for these purposes is made chiefly from wool, 
which is, after washing, first carded out into exceedingly 
fine uniform gossamer-like <ap>. Eneye. Brit., IX. 68. 
A pair of large fluted rollers, revolving in the same di- 
rection, takes on the sheet of cotton until it has formed a 
thick roll, technically called a lap. 
Spans' Eneye. Hanuf., I. 742. 
5. A wheel or disk of lead, copper, wood, lea- 
ther, or other substance, which, being charged 
with polishing- or cutting-powder, is used in 
cutting gems, glass, etc., or in polishing gems 
and cutlery. In some trades and for some purposes the 
outer edge or periphery of the wheel Is covered with the 
polishlng-powder and applied to the material to be fash- 
ioned ; in others the face or flat side of the wheel is used. 
6. In gun-making, a lead casting made to fit the 
bore of a rifle, with which the rifling is smoothed 
and polished. 7. In euehre, a lapping of the 
count from one game to the next; the carry- 
ing of a surplus of points at the end of a game 
over to the score of the next game: done by 
agreement, not as a regular feature of the 
game. 8f. A course or round, as in running ; 
a lapping or roundabout run. 
When their lap \ finished, the cautions huntsman to 
their kennel gathers the nimblefooted hounds. 
Fielding, Jonathan Wild, i. 14. 
9. In walking-matches and similar contests, a 
single round of the course along which com- 
petitors have to go a certain number of times 
in order to complete a specified distance. Thus, 
if a course is 440 yards, a pedestrian would have to do four 
laps or lengths to complete a mile. Left In the laps', 
embarrassed. Sam. 
Viden me tnis consiliis Impeditum esse ? Dost thou not 
see me brought in the briars, or left in the laps, through 
thy devise and counsaile 1 Terence in English (1614). 
lap 4 (lap). An obsolete or dialectal (Scotch) 
preterit of leap*. 
Bow Nannie lap and flung 
(A souple jad she was and strung). 
Burn*, Tarn o' Shanter. 
laparocele (lap'a-ro-sel), n. [< Gr. fair&pa, the 
flank, loins, feni. of Aairopof, soft, + idftJi, tumor.] 
In pathol., a rupture through the side of the 
belly; lumbar hernia. 
laparocolotomy (lap'a-ro-ko-lot'o-mi), n. [< 
Gr. faxapa, the flank, loins, + x&fjyv, the large 
intestine (see colon?), + roftii, a cutting, < Ttu- 
vctv, Tauciv, cut.] In surg., incision into the 
colon through an incision into the peritoneal 
cavity. 
laparo-enterotomy (lap'a-rd-en-te-rot'o-mi), 
n. [< Gr. '/airdpa, the flank, loins, -r- hrrepav, in- 
testine (see entrron), + Totuj, a cutting.] In 
siirg., incision into the intestine through an in- 
cision into the peritoneal cavity. 
laparohysterectomy (lap'a-ro-his-te-rek'to- 
mi), n. [< Gr. favapa, the flank, loins, T iVreoa, 
uterus, + eKTofi//, a cutting out : see Jtysterec- 
Lapbygma 
tomy.] In xnrg., the excision of the uterus 
through an incision in the abdominal walls. 
laparonephrectomy (lap'a-ro-nef-rek'to-mi), 
ii. [< (Jr. /HTO/KJ, the flunk, loins, + vrtypoc, kid- 
ney, + tKToufi, a cutting out.] In surg., the ex- 
cision of the kidney through an incision into 
the peritoneal cavity. 
laparonephrotomy^lap'n-ro-nef-rot'o-mi), . 
[< Gr. fairdpa, the flank, loins, + vetatfr, kidney, 
+ rofifi, a cutting.] In surg., an incision int., 
the kidney by an incision into the abdominal 
walls. 
laparostict (lap'a-ro-stikt), ii. and a. K NL. 
iMparosticta.] I. n. A dung-beetle of the sec- 
tion Liiiiiirnxiii-ta. Amer. Naturalist, XXII. 951. 
II. a. Pertaining to or having the characters 
of the Laparosticta: opposed to pleuroslict. 
Laparosticta (lap*a-ro-etik'ta), n. pi. [NL., 
< Gr. 'tAir&pa, the flank, loins, T orotrof, verbal 
adj. of art f car, prick, stab: see stigma.] A 
section of Searabandtf, including dung-beetles 
whose abdominal stigmata are in the membrane 
between the dorsal and ventral segments, the 
last one covered by the elytra, and whose anten- 
nae are 9- to 11-jointed, the outer three joints 
usually forming the club. They live in excre- 
ment and decomposing matters. 
laparotomic (lap*a-ro-tom'ik),a. [< laparoto- 
my + -ic.] Pertaining to laparotomy. 
laparotomist (lap-a-rot'o-mist), . [< laparol- 
omy + -int.] One who performs laparotomy. 
laparotomize (lap-a-rot'o-miz), v. t. ; pret. and 
pp. Iaparotomi2ca.r>pr. laparotomizing. [< lapa- 
rotomy + -ize.~\ To perform laparotomy upon. 
laparotomy (lap-a-rot'6-mi), n. [< Gr. )W<ipa, 
the flank, loins, -r- Toftfi, a cutting, < rifiveiv, ra- 
uelv, cut.] In surg., incision into the abdomi- 
nal cavity; abdominal section. 
lap-bander (lap'ban'der), n. [< lap 3 + band* 
+ -er l .] Any thing that binds two articles more 
closely together. Halliwell. [North. Eng.] 
lap-board (lap'bord), n. A thin, flat board, 
sometimes cut out on one side to fit the body, 
held on the lap for convenience in needlework, 
shoemaking, and similar occupations. Also 
called lap-table. 
lap-childt (lap'child), n. A baby in arms. 
In springs Roger of York, and, finding Canterbury so 
seated, fairly sits him down on Canterbury's Up (a baby 
too big to be danced thereon ! ) ; yea, Canterbury's servants 
dandled this lap-child with a witness, who plucked him 
thence, and buffeted him to purpose. 
r. Church Hist., III. ill. 8. 
lap-dog (lap'dog), n. A small dog fondled in 
the lap ; a pet dog. 
Not louder shrieks to pitying heaven are cast, 
When husbands or when lapdogi breathe their last. 
Pope, R. of the L., 111. 158. 
lap-dovetail (lap'duv'tal), n. In joinery, a 
form of dovetailing which shows the thickness 
of the lap only on the return edge. 
lap-eared (lap'erd), a. Same as lop-eared. 
lapel (la-pel'), 11. [Also lappel and lapelle; < 
lap 2 T dim. -el. Cf. lappet.'] A part of a gar- 
ment which laps over another part, or which 
is turned over and folded back, either perma- 
nent or adjustable, as for buttoning and unbut- 
toning. 
lapelhout (lap'el-hout), n. Same as ladlewood. 
See Sartogia. 
lapelle (la-pel'), n. See lapel. 
lapelled (la-peld'), a. [< lapel + -eff*.~\ Fur- 
nished with lapels, as a garment. 
lap-frame (lap'fram), n. In flax-manuf., a ma- 
chine used in the preparation of coarse flax- 
ttber or tow for spinning. It unites slivers of carded 
tow delivered from the first carding-machlne or breaker 
Into a lap suited for delivery to the finisher-card, winding 
the lap as formed upon a bobbin, from which the lap ia 
fed or delivered to the finisher-card. 
lapful (lap'ful), n. [< /j>2 + -ful.] As touch 
as the lap can contain. 
The gold and silver which old women believe . . . con- 
jurers bestow by whole lapfuls on poor credulous girls. 
Locke. 
Laphria (laf'ri-a), n. [NL., < Gr. Ao^pi'a, an 
epithet of Artemis; perhaps akin to /.aft-pa, 
spoils taken in war.] A notable genus of rob- 
ber-flies, or dipterous insects of the family Asi- 
litke, species of which resemble bumblebees. 
L. qibbosa and L. flora are examples. 
Laphygma (la-fig'mfi), n. [NL., < Gr. )ajn<}u6f, 
gluttony, < Awpvaoetv, swallow greedily.] A 
genus o"f noctuid moths founded by Guenee in 
1852, characterized bv the full naked eyes, 
smooth front, unarmed tibiae, rounded collar, 
truncate thoracic tuft, and tufted basal seg- 
ments of the abdomen. L. frugiperda is the moth 
whose larra la called the /oU army-worm or graa-tcorm. 
