Wiktionary

nappy

See also: näppy

English

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A toddler wearing a nappy

Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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Probably shortened from napkin (but possibly a corruption of French nappe, since napkin is already a diminutive) +‎ -y (diminutive ending).

Noun

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nappy (plural nappies)

  1. (British, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand) An absorbent garment worn by a baby or toddler who does not yet have voluntary control of their bladder and bowels or by someone who is incontinent; a diaper.
    The baby did a poo in her nappy.
    • 1995, Jennie Lindon, Lance Lindon, Leandra Negrini, Caring for Young Children‎[1], page 60:
      You will notice that disposable nappies are sold in boy and girl versions. They vary in where the thickest padding is provided.
    • 2005, Medical Association of Malawi, “Malawi Medical Journal: The Journal of Medical Association of Malawi”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name)‎[2], volume 17, page 39:
      Other equipment required was soap for hand washing and washing of nappies, a washing line for the drying of nappies, […] .
    • 2008, Isabelle Young, Healthy Travel: Asia & India‎[3], 2nd edition, Lonely Planet, page 275:
      You could burn disposable nappies (not a very practical option); otherwise, it′s probably best to take a supply of large plastic bags or nappy sacks with you and to dispose of them as thoughtfully as you can.
    • 2009, Chris Arnold, Ethical Marketing and The New Consumer‎[4], page 55:
      In response we mailed hundreds of nappies to students in halls. On the nappy was a simple message, IT'S A LOT EASIER TO PUT ON A CONDOM.
Synonyms
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  • (US, Canada, Philippines, India) diaper
  • (South African, archaic British) napkin
Derived terms
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Translations
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Verb

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nappy (third-person singular simple present nappies, present participle nappying, simple past and past participle nappied)

  1. (transitive) To put a nappy on.
    The mother nappied the baby.

See also

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Etymology 2

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From nap +‎ -y.

Adjective

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nappy (comparative nappier, superlative nappiest)

  1. Having a nap (of cloth etc.); downy; shaggy.
    • 1950, US District Courts, US Court of Claims, US Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, Federal Supplement, Volume 89, page 438,
      The original accused device, as was the patented device, was made of cotton flannel with a nappy surface on each side, […] .
  2. (US, informal, sometimes offensive) Of hair: tightly curled or twisted; frizzy (often specifically in reference to Afro textured hair)
    • 1962, James Baldwin, Another Country, New York, N. Y.: The Dial Press, published 1963 January, page 4:
      They could scarcely bear their knowledge, nor could they have borne the sight of Rufus, but they knew why he was in the streets tonight, why he rode subways all night long, why his stomach growled, why his hair was nappy, his armpits funky, his pants and shoes too thin, and why he did not dare to stop and take a leak.
    • 1987, Assata Shakur, Assata: An Autobiography, page 30:
      We would talk about each other′s ugly, big lips and flat noses. We would call each other pickaninnies and nappy-haired so-and-so′s.
    • 2006, Ronald L. Jackson II, Scripting the Black Masculine Body, page 52:
      For example, some Black people′s corporeal zones include nappy hair texture, wide noses, thick lips, and darker-than-white skin complexion, all of which come into play when an individual is interacting with a cultural “Other.”
    • 2010, Nadine George-Graves, Urban Bush Women: Twenty Years of African American Dance Theater, Community Engagement, and Working It Out, page 50:
      She had decided to just cover her hair with a scarf because Aunt Bell was “old school” and Zollar did not want to have to explain why she had nappy hair.
  3. (rare) Inclined to sleep; sleepy.
    • 1930, Hubert Evans, H. E. M. Sellen, The Silent Call, page 90:
      After supper I felt nappy and dropped right off to sleep.
Synonyms
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Translations
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See also

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Etymology 3

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From Middle English nap, from Old English hnæp, hnæpp, hnæpf (“cup, bowl”), from Proto-West Germanic *hnapp, from Proto-Germanic *hnappaz (“bowl, goblet, cup”). See hanaper.

Alternative forms

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Noun

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nappy (plural nappies)

  1. A shallow, flat-bottomed earthenware or glass bowl with sloping sides.
    • 1902, Charles Austin Bates, The Art and Literature of Business, volume 4, page 328:
      Suppose you advertise a “five-inch glass nappy.” It doesn′t tell a reader anything — a woman especially. She can′t tell how big five inches are anyway ; but just say, “large imitation cut glass fruit saucers at thirty cents a dozen,” and get your packers ready.
    • 1909, Milton Osman Jones, Guide to Successful Squab Raising, page 11:
      The use of a glazed earthenware nesting-dish, or “nappy, ” 9 inches in diameter across the top, is strongly advised.
    • 1914, Southern Pharmaceutical Journal, volume 7, page 626:
      Place a slice of pineapple in a fruit nappy, place on it a No. 10 cone of vanilla ice cream and pour over it a ladle of chop suey dressing, crowning it with a freshly opened lycher nut or a cherry.

Etymology 4

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(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Adjective

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nappy (comparative nappier, superlative nappiest)

  1. (of a drink) Foamy; having a large head.
  2. (of a horse) Nervous, excitable.
    • 1928, Siegfried Sassoon, Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man, Penguin, published 2013, page 161:
      ‘He's a mutton-fisted beggar; but the horse is a bit nappy, and young Roger'll be the man to keep him going at his fences.’
    • 1948, John Edward Hance, Better Horsemanship, page 73:
      I do feel, however, that in talking lightheartedly of making rearing, pulling or nappy horses into useful members of equine society I am treading on very dangerous ground.
    • 2006, Karen Coumbe, Karen Bush, The Complete Equine Emergency Bible, page 151:
      Note that it is possible that a horse is not in fact being nappy at all, but is suffering the onset of muscle disorders: it is up to the rider to interpret the signs correctly.
    • 2007, Michael Peace, Lesley Bayley, The Q and a Guide to Understanding Your Horse, page 66:
      When riders are too dominant various problems can arise: a horse may become nappy, or refuse to go forward.

Noun

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nappy (uncountable)

  1. (obsolete) A kind of strong ale; nappy ale.
    • 1827, R. Charlton, Newcastle Improvements, in T. Thompson, et al. A Collection of Songs, Comic and Satirical, Chiefly in the Newcastle Dialect, page 151,
      Aw′ve seen when we′ve gyen iv a kind, freenly way / To be blithe ower a jug o′ good nappy—
    • 1857, Hugh Miller, The Cruise of the Betsey, 2009, Echo Library, page 248,
      Weel do I mind that in a′ our neeborly meetings—bridals, christenings, lyke-wakes an′ the like,—we entertained ane anither wi′ rich nappy ale; […] . But the tea has put out the nappy; an′ I have remarked, that by losing the nappy we lost baith ghaists an′ fairies.

Etymology 5

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Related to knap.

Adjective

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nappy (comparative nappier, superlative nappiest)

  1. (Scotland) Brittle.
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