# tappen
## English
### Pronunciation

* Rhymes: -æpən

### Noun

tappen (uncountable)
* A plug that forms in the anus of a bear or other mammal during hibernation.
** 1831, Lews Lloyd, Field sports of the north Europe‎, volume 1, page 98:The inference drawn by the northern chasseurs from this is, that the tappen, in conjunction with repose, is the cause of the bear retaining his condition, though without taking any kind of nourishment, for nearly one-half of the year.
** 1951, The New York State Conservationist, volumes 6-7, page 60:No food can pass through the system and a mechanical obstruction called a tappen or plug blocks the passage.
** 1958, Will Barker, Winter-Sleeping Wildlife, page 41:Many hunters believe that the size of the tappen determines how soundly and how long a bear sleeps

### Anagrams

* petnap, teppan

## Danish
### Noun

tappen
* definite singular of tap

## Dutch
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈtɑpə(n)/
* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -ɑpən

### Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch tappen. Equivalent to tap +‎ -en.

#### Verb

tappen
* (transitive) to tap (draw off liquid from a vessel)

##### Derived terms

* aftappen
* flappen tappen
* moppen tappen

##### Descendants

* Berbice Creole Dutch: tapu

### Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

#### Noun

tappen
* plural of tap

## German
### Etymology

From Middle High German tāpen, from the onomatopoeic interjection tapp imitating soft walking sounds (of either animals or humans), whence also tipp tapp.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈtapən/
* Audio:(file)
* Hyphenation: tap‧pen

### Verb

tappen (weak, third-person singular present tappt, past tense tappte, past participle getappt, auxiliary haben or sein)
* (intransitive) to pad (walk softly, quietly or steadily)
* (intransitive) to grope, frisk (search by feeling)

#### Conjugation

$^1$Rare except in very formal contexts; alternative in würde normally preferred.

#### Derived terms

* Tappen
* im Dunkeln tappen

### References

* ↑ Wolfgang Pfeifer, editor (1993), “tappen”, in Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen (in German), 2nd edition, Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, →ISBN

### Further reading

* “tappen” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
* “tappen” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon
* “tappen” in Duden online
* “tappen” in OpenThesaurus.de

## Middle English
### Etymology 1

From Old English tæppian, from Proto-Germanic *tappōną; equivalent to tappe (“plug”) +‎ -en (infinitival suffix).

#### Alternative forms

* tappe

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈtapən/

#### Verb

tappen (rare)
* To let fluids flow from a spout.
* To retail beer.

##### Conjugation

| infinitive | (to) tappen, tappe | (to) tappen, tappe |
| | present tense | past tense |
| 1st-person singular | tappe | tapped |
| 2nd-person singular | tappest | tappedest |
| 3rd-person singular | tappeth | tapped |
| subjunctive singular | tappe | tapped |
| imperative singular | tappe | — |
| plural$^1$ | tappen, tappe | tappeden, tappede |
| imperative plural | tappeth, tappe | — |
| participles | tappynge, tappende | tapped, ytapped |
$^1$Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

##### Descendants

* English: tap
* Scots: tap

##### References

* “tappen, v.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-03-23.

### Etymology 2

From Old French tapper, taper, from a Germanic language and ultimately imitative.

#### Alternative forms

* tap, tep, tappyn

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈtapən/

#### Verb

tappen (rare)
* To tap; to touch gently with hand or foot.

##### Conjugation

| infinitive | (to) tappen, tappe | (to) tappen, tappe |
| | present tense | past tense |
| 1st-person singular | tappe | tapped |
| 2nd-person singular | tappest | tappedest |
| 3rd-person singular | tappeth | tapped |
| subjunctive singular | tappe | tapped |
| imperative singular | tappe | — |
| plural$^1$ | tappen, tappe | tappeden, tappede |
| imperative plural | tappeth, tappe | — |
| participles | tappynge, tappende | tapped, ytapped |
$^1$Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

##### Descendants

* English: tap

##### References

* “tappen, v.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-03-23.

## Swedish
### Noun

tappen
* definite singular of tapp c
* definite plural of tapp n