from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Snap \Snap\, n. [Cf. D. snap a snatching. See {Snap}, v. t.]
1. A sudden breaking or rupture of any substance.
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2. A sudden, eager bite; a sudden seizing, or effort to
seize, as with the teeth.
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3. A sudden, sharp motion or blow, as with the finger sprung
from the thumb, or the thumb from the finger.
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4. A sharp, abrupt sound, as that made by the crack of a
whip; as, the snap of the trigger of a gun.
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5. A greedy fellow. --L'Estrange.
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6. That which is, or may be, snapped up; something bitten
off, seized, or obtained by a single quick movement;
hence, a bite, morsel, or fragment; a scrap.
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He's a nimble fellow,
And alike skilled in every liberal science,
As having certain snaps of all. --B. Jonson.
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7. A sudden severe interval or spell; -- applied to the
weather; as, a cold snap. --Lowell.
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8. A small catch or fastening held or closed by means of a
spring, or one which closes with a snapping sound, as the
catch of a bracelet, necklace, clasp of a book, etc.
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9. (Zool.) A snap beetle.
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10. A thin, crisp cake, usually small, and flavored with
ginger; -- used chiefly in the plural.
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11. Briskness; vigor; energy; decision. [Colloq.]
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12. Any circumstance out of which money may be made or an
advantage gained. [Slang]
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13. Any task, labor, set of circumstances, or the like, that
yields satisfactory results or gives pleasure with little
trouble or effort, as an easy course of study, a job
where work is light, a bargain, etc. [Slang, Chiefly U.
S.]
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14. A snap shot with a firearm.
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15. (Photog.) A snapshot.
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16. Something of no value; as, not worth a snap. [Colloq.]
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17. (Football) The action of snapping the ball back, from the
center usu. to the quarterback, which commences the play
(down), and, if the clock had stopped, restarts the timer
clock; a {snap back}.
[PJC]
{Snap back} (Football), the act of snapping back the ball.
{Snap beetle}, or {Snap bug} (Zool.), any beetle of the
family {Elateridae}, which, when laid on its back, is able
to leap to a considerable height by means of a thoracic
spring; -- called also {snapping beetle}.
{Snap flask} (Molding), a flask for small work, having its
sides separable and held together by latches, so that the
flask may be removed from around the sand mold.
{Snap judgment}, a judgment formed on the instant without
deliberation.
{Snap lock}, a lock shutting with a catch or snap.
{Snap riveting}, riveting in which the rivets have snapheads
formed by a die or swaging tool.
{Snap shot}, a quick offhand shot, without deliberately
taking aim.
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