noun

pap

noun

A soft, mushy food, especially one given to babies or the sick.

"The nurse fed the patient a bowl of pap after his surgery."

Undemanding or shallow entertainment or writing; empty content.

"Critics dismissed the film as sentimental pap."

Informal, mainly British slang for a paparazzo photographer.

"A pap camped outside the actor's hotel all week."

verb

To secretly photograph someone, usually a celebrity, without their permission.

"She was papped leaving the restaurant with her new boyfriend."

How to Use Pap

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishSoft baby food, shallow entertainment, or (as slang) a tabloid photographer.

Common mistake

The "photographer" sense is shortened from "paparazzo" and is mainly used informally in British tabloid culture.

more pap comparative, papped past tense, papped past tense, paps plural, paps plural, paps plural, paps singular, paps singular, most pap superlative

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The nurse fed the patient a bowl of _____ after his surgery.

From Middle English pap, related to similar words across Germanic and Romance languages for soft food — likely originating in baby-talk.