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💡 To use resources 👆 To touch lightly 👆 A light touch 🚰 A faucet 🎧 To listen secretly 🎧 Secret listening 👞 To dance with taps 👞 Metal shoe plates 🌳 To draw liquid 💳 To pay by touch 🔩 Thread-cutting tool 🔩 To cut threads
to tap

to tap

174 1.0
To touch or hit something lightly to get attention
  • verb
  • /tæp/
: dar un golpecito
  • You need to tap the screen to open the app.
  • tap a shoulder
  • tap out the rhythm
  • tap someone's head

You just tap, you tap a little tap like that.

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Examples

  • Double tap, tap back, back, tap, tap.

  • Just going to kind of tap it over here.

  • OK, so yeah, so if you tap, there it is.

  • You just tap, you tap a little tap like that.

    GQ

  • So double tap and then single tap to work through the different options.

  • I'm going to just kind of tap over that to blend that in.

  • And I'm just going to use my fingers just to tap the edges.

    Wayne Goss

  • And I'm just going to tap that on my cheeks.

  • I'm just going to tap this onto my cheek.

  • Some players skate past their friends, occasionally tapping them and often giving words of encouragement.

    Academic text (1995)

Synonyms

to knock
vsto tap
825 1.0

To hit a surface to make a short sound to get attention

is gentler and less aimed at calling attention with a loud sound
to brush
vsto tap
133 1.6

To touch something lightly while passing by

is similar but can be done purposefully to make a short sound
to click
vsto tap
92 1.0

Make a short sharp sound like a small tap

is about touching or light striking and may not always make that sound
tick
vsto tap
34 2.0

A short light tapping sound from a clock or watch

is the human action or its sound, not only the mechanical noise
ticking
vsto tap
27 1.2

A light regular tapping sound made by a clock or watch

is the physical act of light hitting or touching, not only rhythmic noise
rap
vsto tap
25 2.1

A short sharp knock on a surface to get attention

is softer overall and may lack the sharper force implied here
tapping
vsto tap
22 1.9

A light repeated sound made by gentle knocks

is the single light hit or its brief sound rather than repetition
strike
vsto tap
17 2.3

A light blow given with the hand or a small tool

is milder and can mean a touch as well as a light blow
tap on
vsto tap
14 2.7

A light touch or knock to get someone's attention

covers that light touch and also the brief sound it makes
dab
vsto tap
8 2.0

A light quick touch with your hand or a cloth

can be a single light hit as well as a simple touch sound
light touch
vsto tap
4 3.9

A gentle, brief contact made with little force

includes such contact but also small light hits that make a sound
to boop
vsto tap
  • Texting
1 8.1

To touch a nose or cheek lightly as a playful act

is broader, covering any light hit or touch, not only playful ones
to tuk
vsto tap
9.9

To give a short, light knock on something

is more general and can be softer or quieter than this sharp action

Idioms

on tap
7 3.4

Drinks like beer or water served from a tap

on tap
5 3.7

Ready to use when needed

Phrasal Verbs

to double tap
  • Texting
3 3.5

Tap twice quickly on a touchscreen to start a function

to tap out
1 4.4

To touch something lightly with fingers or an object to make a rhythm

to tap the screen
1 2.8

Touch the screen lightly with your finger to choose or open something

to tap out
  • Texting
1 5.3

To type a short message by pressing keys or the screen quickly

to tap the keg
  • Informal
1 6.1

To start pouring beer from a keg by attaching something that lets beer flow

Compounds

tap water
27 1.0

Water that comes from a tap used for drinking or cooking

tap on
14 2.7

A light touch or knock to get someone's attention

spinal tap
  • Specialized
9 5.8

To remove fluid from the lower back with a needle for testing

tap dancing
5 3.0

A dance where shoes with metal plates make a rhythm when the feet hit the floor

tap dancer
5 3.5

A person who makes music by hitting the floor with metal plates on their shoes while moving their feet

tap dance
4 3.0

A dance where the feet make tapping sounds using shoes with metal plates

water tap
  • UK
1 1.0

A thing that controls the flow of water from a pipe

bidet tap
  • UK
8.3

A tap that sprays water for washing after using the toilet

champagne tap
7.9

A small tool that pours champagne from a bottle into glasses

tap dance performance
3.7

A dance where dancers make rhythmic sounds by hitting the floor with metal plates on their shoes

tap wrench
  • Specialized
7.3

A tool that holds and turns a tap to cut screw threads inside a hole

tap house
  • US
4.3

A bar that sells beer, often from its own brewery

tap-off
  • Jargon
7.4

The jump ball that starts a basketball game

How Hard

pound
15 4.7
to hit
∞ 1.0
knock
32 1.0
to pat
110 1.0
to tap
174 1.0
to brush
133 1.6
to touch
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

tap infinitive
tapped past
tapped past participle
tapping present participle
taps third person singular

Etymology

Tap as a verb originally imitated the short sound 'tap' you hear when you hit something lightly. So to tap is to touch or hit something softly.