Lap

Lap

:"This article concerns the area at the top of a person's legs; for other similarly named articles, see Lap (disambiguation)."

A lap is a surface created between the knee and hips of a bipedal being when it is in a seated position. A lap only exists in this seated form, and not when a being is standing erect or when it is lying down.

Consumer products for laps

There are numerous consumer devices created specifically for use with the lap. The laptop, for example, was designed for people who required the use of a computer when away from their usual work space. As portable computers grew smaller, some evolved into "notebooks", in reference to their small physical size, instead of its possible positioning during use.

An earlier consumer product designed for the lap was the lapdog. A small dog, usually a terrier, which was bred to sit in the lap of a wealthy or fashionable European woman.

Laps in popular culture

In some forms of the Christmas tradition, young children sit upon the lap of Santa Claus to tell him what gifts they would like. Around the Christmas buying season each year, many malls, especially those in North America are known to offer an area where parents can bring their children to partake in this tradition.

Lapsitting, in general, can also be seen in every day life between relatives, couples, and friends. Lapsitting can occur between people of the opposite sex or the same sex--although same-sex lapsitting does appear to be more common among young women and girls, than in their male counterparts.

The lap and sexuality

A "lap dance" is an erotic dance and sexual act. It is commonly performed as a paid service by exotic dancers to their clientele. A lapdance is performed by one person straddling the lap of the other and gyrating their lower extremities in a provocative manner.


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  • Lap — (l[a^]p), n. [OE. lappe, AS. l[ae]ppa; akin to D. lap patch, piece, G. lappen, OHG. lappa, Dan. lap, Sw. lapp.] 1. The loose part of a coat; the lower part of a garment that plays loosely; a skirt; an apron. Chaucer. [1913 Webster] 2. An edge; a… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • lap — Ⅰ. lap [1] ► NOUN ▪ the flat area between the waist and knees of a seated person. ● fall (or drop) into someone s lap Cf. ↑fall into someone s lap ● in someone s lap Cf. ↑in someone s lap …   English terms dictionary

  • lap — lap1 [lap] n. [ME lappe < OE læppa, fold or hanging part of a garment, skin; akin to Ger lappen < IE base * leb , lāb , to hang down > L labare, to totter, labi, to fall, sink, lapsus, a fall] 1. Now Rare the loose lower part of a… …   English World dictionary

  • LAP — 1922 1987 Jean Laplaine, dit Lap, fut l’un des personnages les plus représentatifs de la continuité caricaturale propre au Canard enchaîné . Il naquit à Joigny en 1922. Après avoir participé activement à la Résistance, il collabora au quotidien… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Lap — Lap, v. t. [OE. lappen to fold (see {Lap}, n.); cf. also OE. wlappen, perh. another form of wrappen, E, wrap.] 1. To fold; to bend and lay over or on something; as, to lap a piece of cloth. [1913 Webster] 2. To wrap or wind around something.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Lap — Lap, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Lapped}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Lapping}.] 1. To rest or recline in a lap, or as in a lap. [1913 Webster] To lap his head on lady s breast. Praed. [1913 Webster] 2. To cut or polish with a lap, as glass, gems, cutlery, etc.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Lap — Lap, v. i. To be turned or folded; to lie partly upon or by the side of something, or of one another; as, the cloth laps back; the boats lap; the edges lap. [1913 Webster] The upper wings are opacous; at their hinder ends, where they lap over,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • LAP — steht für: Lehrabschlussprüfung Lebensabschnittspartner, siehe Lebensgefährte Landesanstalt für Pflanzenbau Forchheim L.A.P., ein Spiel LAP Lambert Academic Publishing, ein Verlag der VDM Publishing Gruppe. Landschaftspflegerischer… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Lap — Lap, n. 1. The act of lapping with, or as with, the tongue; as, to take anything into the mouth with a lap. [1913 Webster] 2. The sound of lapping. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Lap — Lap, v. i. [OE. lappen, lapen, AS. lapian; akin to LG. lappen, OHG. laffan, Icel. lepja, Dan. lade, Sw. l[ a]ppja, L. lambere; cf. Gr. ?, W. llepio. Cf. {Lambent}.] 1. To take up drink or food with the tongue; to drink or feed by licking up… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • lap up — lap up, v. t. [See {lap}, v. i.] 1. To take up (drink or food) with the tongue; to drink by licking up. [1913 Webster] 2. (fig.) To accept or enjoy enthusiatically and uncritically. [PJC] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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