to make a sudden, sharp, distinct sound; crack, as a whip; crackle.
to click, as a mechanism or the jaws or teeth coming together.
to move, strike, shut, catch, etc., with a sharp sound, as a door, lid, or lock.
to break suddenly, especially with a sharp, cracking sound, as something slender and brittle: The branch snapped.
to act or move with quick or abrupt motions of the body: to snap to attention.
Photography. to take a photograph, especially without formal posing of the subject.
to make a quick or sudden bite or grab (often followed by at).
to utter a quick, sharp sentence or speech, especially a command, reproof, retort, etc. (often followed by at).
to be radiant; sparkle; flash, as the eyes.
verb (used with object),snapped,snap·ping.
to seize with or take, buy, or obtain as with a quick bite or grab (followed by up or off): The bargains were snapped up.
to secure, judge, vote, etc., hastily: They snapped the bill through Congress.
to cause to make a sudden, sharp sound: to snap one's fingers.
to crack (a whip).
to bring, strike, shut, open, operate, etc., with a sharp sound or movement: to snap a lid down.
to address or interrupt (a person) quickly and sharply.
to say or utter (words, a command, a retort, etc.) in a quick, sharp manner: to snap complaints.
to break suddenly, especially with a cracking sound: to snap a stick in half.
Photography. to take a photograph of, especially quickly.
Digital Technology. to use a smartphone or other digital device to scan (a QR code or other source) in order to read the encoded text or URL and to browse the hyperlinked website or web page.
Building Trades. to transfer (a line) to a surface by means of a chalk line.
Football. to put (the ball) into play by tossing it back to the quarterback or other member of the offensive backfield, especially from between the legs when bent over double and facing the line of scrimmage; center.
Hunting. to fire (a shot) quickly, especially without raising the gun to aim from the eye.
noun
a quick, sudden action or movement, as the flick of a whip or the breaking of a twig.
a short, sharp sound, as that caused by breaking a twig or closing a latch.
a catch or fastener that closes by pressure and clicks together.
Informal. briskness, vigor, or energy: That song has a lot of snap.
a quick, sharp speech or manner of speaking: He uttered his commands with a snap.
a quick or sudden bite or grab, as at something: The fish ate with little snaps.
something obtained by or as by biting or grabbing: a snap of food.
a brittle cookie.
a short spell or period, as of cold weather: an unexpected cold snap.
Photography. snapshot (def. 1).
Informal. an easy, profitable, or agreeable position, piece of work, or the like: This job is a snap.
Football. the act or an instance of snapping the ball.
snap bean.
Informal. snapdragon.
British. a packed lunch, as that carried by a worker or traveler.
adjective
fastening or closing with a click or snap, as a device fitted with a spring catch: a snap lock.
made, done, taken, etc., suddenly, offhand, or without warning: a snap judgment;a snap election called years ahead of schedule.
easy or simple.
adverb
in a brisk, sudden manner.
interjection
(an exclamation of surprise, wonder, pleasure, regret, disappointment, etc.): Oh snap! I forgot we had a test today!
Verb Phrases
snap to,
to come to attention: The troops snapped to when the colonel walked in.
to shape up: If you don't snap to and study, you'll flunk the course.
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Idioms for snap
not give / care a snap of one's fingers for, to regard with indifference; treat lightly.Also not give / care a snap .
snap one's fingers at. finger (def. 25).
snap out of, to free oneself from; recover from: It took him a long time to snap out of his grief.
snap / bite someone's head off. bite (def. 33).
Origin of snap
First recorded in 1485–95; from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German snappen “to bite, seize”
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program:a federal program for low-income Americans that provides them with electronically deposited benefits to pay for food, as at grocery stores or markets.
They were snapped before the spacecraft officially began collecting science data.
Close-up of the sun reveals ‘campfires’|Lisa Grossman|August 28, 2020|Science News For Students
That proved useful in early 2019, when SubX forecasts foresaw, weeks before it happened, the severe cold snap that hit the United States in late January and early February.
Improved three-week weather forecasts could save lives from disaster|Alexandra Witze|August 27, 2020|Science News
People stuck at home have been snapping up them up while the number of the consoles produced has tumbled because of shuttered factories.
Gamers, get ready: Nintendo’s Switch should be available again soon. But maybe not for long|dzanemorris|August 26, 2020|Fortune
The scientists used the Very Large Telescope in Chile to snap the photo.
A weird cousin of our solar system is caught on camera|Lisa Grossman|August 26, 2020|Science News For Students
He trekked to a mountaintop in Wyoming with a special camera to snap polarized pictures of the corona just as the moon blocked the sun.
Check out the first-ever map of the solar corona’s magnetic field|Lisa Grossman|August 21, 2020|Science News
There is just no way of selling this picture with an innocent defense like, “she just asked for a snap.”
Buckingham Palace Disputes Sex Allegations Against Prince ‘Randy Andy’|Tom Sykes|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
For days, the ruble has been falling and salaries shrinking; shoppers have rushed to snap up TV sets and washing machines.
After His Disastrous Annual Press Conference, Putin Needs A Hug|Anna Nemtsova|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
That Snapchat deceptively told its users that the sender would be notified if a recipient took a screenshot of a snap.
‘The Snappening’ Is Real: 90,000 Private Photos and 9,000 Hacked Snapchat Videos Leak Online|Marlow Stern|October 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It means to be all the things that the individuals he turns into storytellers on Snap naturally are, in all their marginality.