What does "soap" mean?
A metallic salt derived from a fatty acid, commonly used in cleaning products.
Soap
/soʊp/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A metallic salt derived from a fatty acid, commonly used in cleaning products.
- Grammar: soap is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: abstergent, adulation, amole, antimasque.
- Useful contrasts: alcohol, dirt, grime.
- Usage evidence: This soap will improve her complexion.
How to use "soap"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "soap" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "soap" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "soap" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "soap" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "soap" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "abstergent" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "soap", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A metallic salt derived from a fatty acid, commonly used in cleaning products. countable, uncountable
- 2 thiopental (sodium pentothal) slang, uncountable
"'Time? Doesn't have much meaning when they're trying to dry you out. I rather think they gave me a shot of soap at one point.' Soap is intelligence speak for sodium pentathol."
- 3 Acronym of subjective, objective, assessment, and plan. abbreviation, acronym, alt-of, uncountable
- 4 a cleansing agent made from the salts of vegetable or animal fats wordnet
- 5 Some other substance, often a detergent or another surfactant, able to mix with both oil and water, used for cleaning. broadly, countable, informal, uncountable
"I tried washing my hands with soap, but the stain wouldn't go away."
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 street names for gamma hydroxybutyrate wordnet
- 7 Money, specially when used as a bribe. countable, slang, uncountable
- 8 money offered as a bribe wordnet
- 9 A soap opera. countable, informal
- 10 A solid masonry unit or brick reduced in depth or height from standard dimensions. countable
Verb
- 1 To apply soap to in washing. transitive
"Be sure to soap yourself well before rinsing."
- 2 rub soap all over, usually with the purpose of cleaning wordnet
- 3 To cover, lather, or in any other manner treat with soap, often as a prank. informal, transitive
"Those kids soaped my windows!"
- 4 To be discreet about (a topic). informal, transitive
- 5 To flatter; to wheedle. dated, slang
Proper Noun
- 1 Acronym of Simple Object Access Protocol, a standard Internet protocol for exchanging structured information in a distributed environment. abbreviation, acronym, alt-of
"The specified system will use SOAP for message exchange."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"This soap will improve her complexion."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "soap"?
Common synonyms include: abstergent, adulation, amole, antimasque, audience success, ballet.
How do you use "soap" in a sentence?
This soap will improve her complexion.
How do you pronounce "soap"?
Pronounced /soʊp/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English sope, sape, from Old English sāpe (“soap, salve”), from Proto-West Germanic *saipā, from Proto-Germanic *saipǭ, from Proto-Indo-European *seyb-, *seyp- (“to pour out, drip, trickle, strain”). Cognate with Scots saip, sape (“soap”), Saterland Frisian Seepe (“soap”), West Frisian sjippe (“soap”), Dutch zeep (“soap”), German Low German Seep (“soap”), German Seife (“soap”), Danish sæbe (“soap”), Swedish såpa (“soap”), Norwegian Bokmål såpe (“soap”), Norwegian Nynorsk såpe (“soap”), Faroese sápa (“soap”), Icelandic sápa (“soap”), Finnish saippua (“soap”), Finnish suopa (“soft soap”). Related also to Old English sāp (“amber, resin, pomade, unguent”), Latin sēbum (“tallow, fat, grease”). See seep. Latin sāpō (“soap”) is a borrowing from the Germanic.
Etymology 2
Probably an abbreviation of sodium pentothal.