zap

Etymology

It is imitative,^[2][3][4][5] echoing the sound of a ray gun, laser or bullet.^[6][7] Etymonline calls it a science-fiction comic-strip word, especially from "Buck Rogers in the Twenty-Fifth Century", imitating the supposed sound of a ray weapon,^[7] and Barnhart likewise links the verb with the ray gun of the "Buck Rogers" strip, or with the blow of a heavy club as drawn in the strip "B.C.".^[8] The Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins notes that in comic strips of the 1920s zap often stood for the sound of a ray gun or similar weapon.^[9] The verb is formed from the interjection, and the noun from both.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

As an interjection, the sound of a ray gun, laser, bullet or the like: 1929, in the Washington Post.^[6][3][7]

Semantic evolution

From the sound of the weapon came the verb, recorded in 1942 in Berrey and Van den Bark's American Thesaurus of Slang for "to kill", especially by shooting, or to strike suddenly;^{[6][10][8][7]} Green's Dictionary of Slang marks it as originally American military slang.^[10] The interjection was also used figuratively for any sudden or dramatic event.^[6][5] The 1960s added the senses of failing someone in a test (1961), overwhelming someone emotionally (1967), sending or hitting forcefully (1967) and moving quickly (1968).^[6][8] The noun, energy or liveliness, is dated by Merriam-Webster to 1963^[3] and by the OED to 1968,^[6] and Green's quotes it from a 1966 letter of Hunter S. Thompson.^[10] Computing and electronics gave the senses of erasing or changing an item in a program (1982),^[6][8][7] and of skipping advertisements or switching channels with a remote control, from 1983;^[6][9] cooking food in a microwave oven is recorded from 1975, and to make something livelier or spicier from 1979.^[6][3]

Timeline

• 1929 – interjection, the sound of a ray gun or similar weapon.^[6][3][7]
• 1942 – verb, to kill, especially by shooting; to strike suddenly.^[6][10][8]
• 1961 – to fail someone in a test; to punish.^[6]
• 1967 – to overwhelm emotionally; to send or hit forcefully.^[6]
• 1968 – to move quickly; noun, energy, liveliness.^[6][8]
• 1969 – noun, a ray gun.^[6]
• 1972 – noun and verb, a demonstration, to demonstrate against.^[6]
• 1975 – to cook in a microwave oven.^[6]
• 1979 – to liven up or spice up; noun, a bolt of electricity or burst of radiation.^[6]
• 1982 – to erase or change an item in a computer program.^[6][8][7]
• 1983 – to skip advertisements or switch channels with a remote control.^[6]

Meanings

Verb

1. To destroy, kill or stun suddenly, as with a gun or a burst of energy: The hero zapped the alien with his ray gun.^[11][3][6]
2. To hit with a sudden concentrated force or energy, especially with a laser; to irradiate, especially in a microwave oven.^[3][6]
3. To move or send quickly; to rush.^[11][3][6]
4. (computing) To erase or clear an item, as from a screen or a program.^[11][6]
5. To change television channels rapidly by remote control, or to skip advertisements in this way.^[11][3][6]
6. To give flavour or liveliness to; to spice up.^[3][6]

Noun

1. Energy, liveliness or pep; zip.^[11][3][10]
2. A sudden forceful blow or attack; a bolt of electricity or burst of radiation.^[3][6]

Interjection

1. Used to imitate the sound of a ray gun or the like, or to express a sudden or swift action.^[11][3][6]

Word family

• zapper
• zappy

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z 27 28 29 Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
8. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
9. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
10. ^ a b c d e Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
11. ^ a b c d e f Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins