I. ˈsäp noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English soppe, from Old English sopp; akin to Middle Low German soppe soup, broth, Middle Dutch sop pot liquor, broth, sauce, Old High German sopfa piece of bread soaked in milk, Old Norse soppa soup, Old English sūpan to swallow, sip, taste — more at sup
1. chiefly dialect : a piece of food (as bread) dipped or steeped in a liquid before being eaten
2. chiefly dialect : the liquid into which food is dipped before being eaten ; especially : gravy
3. : a wet soppy mess
4. : a foolish spineless individual : milksop
5. dialect England : a tuft of damp green grass mixed in with hay
6. : a conciliatory or propitiatory bribe, gift, or advance
as a sop to the low-paid teachers … the board approved $400-a-year raises — Time
II. verb
( sopped ; sopped ; sopping ; sops )
transitive verb
1. : to steep or dip in or as if in a liquid
sop bread in gravy
2. : to mop (as water) so as to leave a dry or semidry surface
3. : to give a bribe or conciliatory gift to
intransitive verb
1. : to become completely soaked
2. : to soak in : ooze through
III. abbreviation
soprano