sop

A1 Topic:People & Society

US /sɑp/ UK /sɒp/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a concession or bribe given to pacify or appease someone

He offered a sop to the critics by promising to review the policy.
2

noun
a piece of food, especially bread, used to soak up liquid

She dipped a sop of bread into the gravy.
3

noun
a trivial gift or gesture (informal)

The small bonus was just a sop to keep the staff quiet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a concession or bribe given... pacifierappeasement concession bribe inducement

2 noun · a piece of food, especially... soaked breadbread piecebread chunk

3 noun · a trivial gift or gesture... token triflesmall giftminor offering

Simplified etymology

Sop comes from Old English and originally referred to dipping bread in liquid. Its later sense of a conciliatory offering developed through the expression “a sop to Cerberus,” recalling the drugged cake used to pacify the watchdog of the underworld in classical legend.

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *sup- ('to soak'), via Old English sopp / Old Norse soppa ('bread soaked in liquid') and Middle English soppe (14th c.) into Modern English sop ('a piece of bread soaked in liquid', and figuratively 'a concession given to appease').

Topics

People & Society Register & Style

External links

# sop

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /sɑp/
**IPA (UK):** /sɒp/

## Meanings
1. a concession or bribe given to pacify or appease someone
2. a piece of food, especially bread, used to soak up liquid
3. a trivial gift or gesture (informal)

## Examples
- He offered a sop to the critics by promising to review the policy.
- She dipped a sop of bread into the gravy.
- The small bonus was just a sop to keep the staff quiet.

## Synonyms
- pacifier
- appeasement
- concession
- bribe
- inducement
- soaked bread
- token
- trifle
- small gift
- minor offering

## Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *sup- ('to soak'), via Old English sopp / Old Norse soppa ('bread soaked in liquid') and Middle English soppe (14th c.) into Modern English sop ('a piece of bread soaked in liquid', and figuratively 'a concession given to appease').

## AI Etymology
Sop comes from Proto-Germanic *sup- ('to soak'), via Old English sopp / Old Norse soppa ('bread soaked in liquid') and Middle English soppe (14th c.) into Modern English sop ('a piece of bread soaked in liquid', and figuratively 'a concession given to appease'). In current use it is a noun meaning "a concession or bribe given to pacify or appease someone". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The history is mainly one of transmission into English, with the older form and sense carried through borrowing or adaptation. For dictionary purposes, the important point is the continuity between the older form, the route into English, and the present lexical sense.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Register & Style

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sop