zap: Meaning and Definition of

zap

Pronunciation: (zap), [key]
— v., n. zapped, zap•ping,
—v.t.
  1. to kill or shoot.
  2. to attack, defeat, or destroy with sudden speed and force.
  3. to bombard with electrical current, radiation, laser beams, etc.
  4. to strike or jolt suddenly and forcefully.
  5. to cook in a microwave oven.
  6. to skip over or delete (TV commercials), as by switching channels or pushing a fast-forward button on a playback device: We recorded the show on our VCR but zapped all the commercials.
  7. to add a sudden infusion of energy, verve, color, attractiveness, or the like (often fol. by up): just the thing to zap up your spring wardrobe.
—v.i.
  1. to move quickly, forcefully, or destructively: high-voltage currents zapping overhead.
—n.
  1. force, energy, or drive; zip.
  2. a jolt or charge, as or as if of electricity.
  3. a forceful and sudden blow, hit, or attack.
  4. any method of political activism, usually of a disruptive nature.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
See also:
  • zap (Thesaurus)