quick whap
- noun
- Informal
:
golpe rápido
- He knocked the dust off the rug with a quick whap of his hand.
Examples
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The fly met its end with a quick whap from the newspaper.
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With a quick whap, she closed the book.
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He received a quick whap on the back.
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Did you hear that quick whap?
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The fly met its end with a quick whap from the newspaper.
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He knocked the dust off the rug with a quick whap of his hand.
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With a quick whap, she closed the book.
Synonyms
237
1.3
A sudden loud noise from a hit or impact
119
6.3
A sharp, forceful hit that makes a loud sound
108
8.4
A sudden very loud noise, like an explosion or a slammed door
85
2.1
A loud noise when something hits or closes suddenly
78
5.8
A sudden loud noise like the bang of a gun
19
7.3
A sudden loud sound from a hit, explosion, or when something bursts
15
3.6
A sudden loud sound when one thing hits another
11
7.0
A strong emotional effect that stays with you
10
1.2
A sudden very loud noise often from an explosion or crash
1
9.9
A loud hit that makes a sharp sound
How Hard
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a swift, sharp hit' is directly and compositionally derived from 'quick' (occurring in a short time) modifying 'whap' (a hit/sudden sound); this follows normal adjective + action/sound noun patterns. Because 'whap' is onomatopoeic and the combination is straightforward, a B1 learner who knows both constituents would very likely infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Quick whap may come from the sound word whap, which copies the noise of a fast slap, and the word quick shows it happens very fast. One popular story says people used that sharp 'whap' sound to describe a sudden action, so today quick whap means 'a sudden, sharp hit or sound'.