Meaning

noun a period of time spent sleeping

noun a soft or fuzzy surface texture

noun the yarn (as in a rug or velvet or corduroy) that stands up from the weave

originFrom Middle English nap (“a bowl”), from Old English hnæpp (“a cup, bowl”), from Proto-West Germanic *hnapp, from Proto-Germanic *hnappaz (“a cup, bowl”). Cognate with Dutch nap (“drinking cup”), Low German Napp (“bowl, cup”), German Napf (“bowl”), Icelandic hnappur (“button, key”). Doublet of hanap. See also nappy.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0