Lapped

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To have splashed or washed gently against something while also enwrapping or holding onto another entity closely, creating layers or a covering effect
2. To have rhythmically splashed against a surface while also encompassing or supporting another matter in a manner that implies depth or intimacy
3. Moved gently against a surface with soft splashes ; positioned so as to cover part of something else by extending over its edge

Etymology: "Lapped" is the past tense and past participle of "lap," a verb that goes back to a Germanic root meaning to fold or wrap. An earlier form, "wlappen," meant "to fold" or "to wrap," and the Dutch "lappen" meant "to wrap up" or "to embrace." The idea of enfolding is the thread running through the verb's meanings. The sense of gently washing against something combines that wrapping notion with the motion of water. The racing sense, getting a full circuit ahead of a rival, dates from 1847 and is based on the idea of one runner overlapping another. "Envelop" and "develop" are related words.

Synonyms: licked, washed, bathed, swirled, drenched

Antonyms: dried, desiccated, emptied