Etymologically
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laper

Etymology and origin of the French word laper

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Confidence
Probable
Formation
Onomatopoeia
First attested
c. 1180, Marie de France

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /la.pe/[1]

Forms

laper[1] Also lapper (old spelling, still in Huysmans and the Goncourts).[2][3]

Etymology

It comes from an imitative root “lap-” expressing the sound of lapping.[2][4][3][5] A borrowing from Germanic (German lappen, Middle Dutch “lapen”, Old English lapian, English lap) is not necessary, since the word also exists in several Romance languages (Genoese “lappa” “to drink”, Andalusian “lapo” “gulp”);[2][4] Bloch and Wartburg allow that the Germanic words may be independent formations.[6] Wiktionary and Littré take it from Germanic.[1][7]

lamper is a nasalised form.[4][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Marie de France's Fables (about 1180) has L'ewe comença a laper, it began to lap the water: of an animal drinking with its tongue.[2][7]

Semantic evolution

By about 1200 (Aliscans) it was used of a person drinking greedily (le vin boire, engloutir et laper), and Eustache Deschamps warns against trop laper d'hypocras;[2][7][8] this familiar sense later passed to lamper.[4] The verb has otherwise kept its first sense, of a cat or dog drinking.[9][2] Lapement dates from 1611; in Belgium a lapette is weak, watery coffee.[2][4]

Timeline

  • c. 1180 – Laper in Marie de France.[2]
  • c. 1200 – Of a person, in Aliscans.[2]
  • 1611 – Lapement, in Cotgrave.[2]
  • 1642 – Lamper.[4]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To lap (up): le chat lape son lait.[9][1]
  2. (familiar) Of a person, to drink greedily.[8][2]

Word family

References

  1. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard
  3. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  4. ^ a b c d e f Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 5, 174a
  6. ^ a b Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  7. ^ a b c Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
  8. ^ a b Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  9. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
Cite this entry

“Laper.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/laper. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

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