snap

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To break suddenly with a sharp cracking sound.

   The dry twig snapped under his foot.

2. 2
   verb

   To speak suddenly in an angry, sharp way.

   "Leave me alone!" she snapped.

3. 3
   verb

   To move or close quickly with a sharp sound.

   The lid snapped shut.

4. 4
   noun

   A short period of sudden cold weather.

   A cold snap in May killed many of the young plants.

5. 5
   noun

   A small fastener that closes with a sharp sound, used on clothing.

   The jacket fastens with snaps instead of buttons.

From Dutch snappen (“to bite; seize”) or Low German snappen (“to bite; seize”), ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *snappōn, from Proto-Germanic *snappōną (“to snap; snatch; chatter”), intensive form of *snapāną (”to snap; grab”, whence Old Norse snapa (“to get; scrounge”)), from Proto-Indo-European *snop-; compare Lithuanian snãpas (“beak, bill”). (One alternative hypothesis links the Germanic words to *snu-, an expressive root deriving words meaning “nose”, “snout”, “sniff” etc., but this is phonetically unsound.) In any case influenced by onomatopoeia; note expressions such as snip-snap, c…

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