Nape
noun, verb, slang ·Moderate ·High school level
Definitions
- 1 The back part of the neck.
"He was still stroking Radar, long glides of his hand from nape to tail."
- 2 A tablecloth. obsolete
- 3 Napalm. slang, uncountable
"RHAH: They got through Alpha Company! Anything behind you don't identify itself, blow it away. Two - air strike's coming in. They gonna lay snake and nape right on the perimeter so stay tight in your holes and don't leave 'em."
- 4 Abbreviation of N-acyl-phosphatidylethanolamine. abbreviation, alt-of
- 5 the back side of the neck wordnet
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- 6 The part of a fish or bird immediately behind the head.
- 1 To bombard with napalm. slang, transitive
Example
More examples"Would you like me to shave the nape of your neck?"
Etymology
From Middle English nape, naape, of uncertain origin. Possibly from Old French hanap (“goblet”), from Frankish *hnapp, from Proto-Germanic *hnappaz ( > Old English hnæpp, hnæp (“cup, bowl, goblet”)), as there is a hollow at the base of the skull. More at nap.
From Middle English nape, from Old French nape, nappe (“a cloth”), from Medieval Latin nappa, napa (“cloth, table-cloth, sheet”), alteration of Latin mappa (“a cloth, napkin, towel”). More at map, apron. Doublet of map, mop, and nappe.
Short for napalm.
Related phrases
More for "nape"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.