from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Tape \Tape\, n. [AS. t[ae]ppe a fillet. Cf. {Tapestry},
{Tippet}.]
1. A narrow fillet or band of cotton or linen; a narrow woven
fabric used for strings and the like; as, curtains tied
with tape.
[1913 Webster]
2. A tapeline; also, a metallic ribbon so marked as to serve
as a tapeline; as, a steel tape.
[1913 Webster]
{Red tape}. See under {Red}.
{Tape grass} (Bot.), a plant ({Vallisneria spiralis}) with
long ribbonlike leaves, growing in fresh or brackish
water; -- called also {fresh-water eelgrass}, and, in
Maryland, {wild celery}.
{Tape needle}. See {Bodkin}, n., 4.
[1913 Webster]