snap Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun the act of catching an object with the hands
    catch; grab; snatch.
    • Mays made the catch with his back to the plate
    • he made a grab for the ball before it landed
    • Martin's snatch at the bridle failed and the horse raced away
    • the infielder's snap and throw was a single motion
  2. noun a spell of cold weather
    • a cold snap in the middle of May
  3. noun tender green beans without strings that easily snap into sections
    snap bean.
  4. noun a crisp round cookie flavored with ginger
    ginger nut; ginger snap; gingersnap.
  5. noun the noise produced by the rapid movement of a finger from the tip to the base of the thumb on the same hand
    • servants appeared at the snap of his fingers
  6. noun a sudden sharp noise
    cracking; crack.
    • the crack of a whip
    • he heard the cracking of the ice
    • he can hear the snap of a twig
  7. noun a sudden breaking
  8. noun the tendency of a body to return to its original shape after it has been stretched or compressed
    elasticity.
    • the waistband had lost its snap
  9. noun an informal photograph; usually made with a small hand-held camera
    shot; snapshot.
    • my snapshots haven't been developed yet
    • he tried to get unposed shots of his friends
  10. noun a fastener used on clothing; fastens with a snapping sound
    press stud; snap fastener.
    • children can manage snaps better than buttons
  11. noun any undertaking that is easy to do
    picnic; walkover; duck soup; piece of cake; breeze; child's play; cinch; pushover.
    • marketing this product will be no picnic
  12. noun the act of snapping the fingers; movement of a finger from the tip to the base of the thumb on the same hand
    • he gave his fingers a snap
  13. noun (American football) putting the ball in play by passing it (between the legs) to a back
    centering.
    • the quarterback fumbled the snap
  14. verb utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone
    snarl.
    • The sales clerk snapped a reply at the angry customer
    • The guard snarled at us
  15. verb separate or cause to separate abruptly
    tear; rupture; bust.
    • The rope snapped
    • tear the paper
  16. verb break suddenly and abruptly, as under tension
    crack.
    • The pipe snapped
  17. verb move or strike with a noise
    click.
    • he clicked on the light
    • his arm was snapped forward
  18. verb close with a snapping motion
    • The lock snapped shut
  19. verb make a sharp sound
    crack.
    • his fingers snapped
  20. verb move with a snapping sound
    • bullets snapped past us
  21. verb to grasp hastily or eagerly
    snatch up; snatch.
    • Before I could stop him the dog snatched the ham bone
  22. verb put in play with a snap
    • snap a football
  23. verb cause to make a snapping sound
    flick; click.
    • snap your fingers
  24. verb lose control of one's emotions
    lose it; break down.
    • When she heard that she had not passed the exam, she lost it completely
    • When her baby died, she snapped
  25. verb bring the jaws together
    • he snapped indignantly
  26. verb record on photographic film
    shoot; photograph.
    • I photographed the scene of the accident
    • She snapped a picture of the President

WordNet

Snap transitive verb
Etymology
LG. or D. snappen to snap up, to snatch; akin to G. schnappen, MHG. snaben, Dan. snappe, and to D. snavel beak, bill. Cf. Neb, Snaffle, n.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Snapped ; present participle & verbal noun Snapping
Definitions
  1. To break at once; to break short, as substances that are brittle.
    Breaks the doors open, snaps the locks. Prior.
  2. To strike, to hit, or to shut, with a sharp sound.
  3. To bite or seize suddenly, especially with the teeth.
    He, by playing too often at the mouth of death, has been snapped by it at last. South.
  4. To break upon suddenly with sharp, angry words; to treat snappishly; -- usually with up. Granville.
  5. To crack; to cause to make a sharp, cracking noise; as, to snap a whip.
    MacMorian snapped his fingers repeatedly. Sir W. Scott.
  6. To project with a snap.
Snap intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To break short, or at once; to part asunder suddenly; as, a mast snaps; a needle snaps.
    But this weapon will snap short, unfaithful to the hand that employs it. Burke.
  2. To give forth, or produce, a sharp, cracking noise; to crack; as, blazing firewood snaps.
  3. To make an effort to bite; to aim to seize with the teeth; to catch eagerly (at anything); -- often with at; as, a dog snapsat a passenger; a fish snaps at the bait.
  4. To utter sharp, harsh, angry words; -- often with at; as, to snap at a child. usu. impulsively and as a quick reaction to some perceived provocation
  5. To miss fire; as, the gun snapped.
Snap noun
Etymology
Cf. D. snap a snatching. See Snap, v. t.
Definitions
  1. A sudden breaking or rupture of any substance.
  2. A sudden, eager bite; a sudden seizing, or effort to seize, as with the teeth.
  3. A sudden, sharp motion or blow, as with the finger sprung from the thumb, or the thumb from the finger.
  4. A sharp, abrupt sound, as that made by the crack of a whip; as, the snap of the trigger of a gun.
  5. A greedy fellow. L'Estrange.
  6. That which is, or may be, snapped up; something bitten off, seized, or obtained by a single quick movement; hence, a bite, morsel, or fragment; a scrap.
    He's a nimble fellow, And alike skilled in every liberal science, As having certain snaps of all. B. Jonson.
  7. A sudden severe interval or spell; -- applied to the weather; as, a cold snap. but not a heat snap Lowell.
  8. A small catch or fastening held or closed by means of a spring, or one which closes with a snapping sound, as the catch of a bracelet, necklace, clasp of a book, etc.
  9. (Zoöl.) A snap beetle.
  10. A thin, crisp cake, usually small, and flavored with ginger; -- used chiefly in the plural.
  11. Briskness; vigor; energy; decision. Colloq.
  12. Any circumstance out of which money may be made or an advantage gained. Slang (Footbale) The action of snapping the ball back, from the center usu. to the quarterback, which commences the play (down), and, if the clock had stopped, restarts the timer clock; snap back.

Webster 1913