Nep

//nɛp// name, noun, verb, slang

name, noun, verb, slang ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Initialism of noise-equivalent power. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
  2. 2
    Catmint, catnip; Nepeta cataria. uncountable, usually

    "Nep is generally used for women to procure their courses, being taken inwardly or outwardly, either alone or with other convenient herbs in a decoction to bathe them, of sit over the hot fumes thereof."

  3. 3
    A knot in a fibre.

    "The neps appear as small dense areas or spots when compared to the surrounding fibers."

  4. 4
    One who engages in nepotism, usually to the one who benefits from it. US, derogatory, slang
  5. 5
    Nepali derogatory, ethnic, informal, offensive, slur

    "Nepali job. Hundred and one per cent a Nep job. You've seen some of the crime they're responsible for. I tell you, these guys are fucking crazy. […] Ninety-nine per cent of this kind of crime, at least in Delhi, is done by Neps."

Show 2 more definitions
  1. 6
    Initialism of nanosatellite engineering professional. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
  2. 7
    Initialism of non-English proficient. US, abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
Verb
  1. 1
    Of cotton: to form knots. UK, dialectal, intransitive
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    Initialism of New Economic Policy. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
  2. 2
    Initialism of National Energy Program. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
  3. 3
    Initialism of National Election Pool. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism

Synonyms

All synonyms
kneppars

Example

More examples

"Nep is generally used for women to procure their courses, being taken inwardly or outwardly, either alone or with other convenient herbs in a decoction to bathe them, of sit over the hot fumes thereof."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English neppe, nepe, nepte, nept, from Old English nepte, nefte, from Latin nepeta. Compare Dutch neppe, nippe (“catnip”). Doublet of nepeta.

Etymology 2

Perhaps a variant of nap for knap, from Middle English knep, kneppe, knappe, a conflation of Old English cnep, cnæp, cnæpp (“top, knop, summit”) and Old Norse knappr (“knob”), both from Proto-Germanic *knappaz, *knappô (“knob”), from Proto-Indo-European *gnebʰ- (“to press, tighten”), from Proto-Indo-European *gen- (“to pinch, squeeze, bend, press together, ball”). Compare also Old Norse hnappr (“button”). Related to knob.

Etymology 3

Clipping of nepotist.

Related phrases

nepeta cataria

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.