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nape

 
(nāp, năp) pronunciation
n.
The back of the neck.

[Middle English.]


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nape

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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: Back of the neck.

pronunciation They found the red swelling where the spider had bit her on the nape of her neck.

Tutor's tip: The woodpecker's "knap" ( sharp rap or strike) nipped my "nap" (short sleep) just as spray from the "nappe" (water overflow of a dam) hit my "nape" (back part of the neck).

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The back of the neck. Called also nucha.

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categories related to 'nape'

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Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
For a list of words related to nape, see:

  See crossword solutions for the clue Nape.
The nape of a Geisha
Mother cat carrying her kitten

The nape is the back of the neck. In technical anatomical/medical terminology, the nape is referred to by the word nucha, which also gives the adjective corresponding to "nape" in English, "nuchal".

In many mammals, the nape is the site of the scruff, a loose, non-sensitive area of skin by which the mother can carry her young, holding the scruff between her teeth. In domestic cats, the scruff is used when a mother cat transfers her kittens to a new nest or den site (carrying each kitten by gripping its scruff in her teeth), and in mating, when the male cat (tom) grips the female cat's scruff with his teeth to help keep her relatively immobile.[1]

In traditional Japanese culture, the nape (known in the Japanese language as unaji ) was one of the few areas of the body (other than face and hands) left uncovered by women's attire. The nape of a woman's neck held a strong attraction for many Japanese men (see Geisha makeup).[2]

The nape is sometimes a target of body piercing.[3]

References

  1. ^ Illustrated Catwatching by Desmond Morris (Crescent Books, 1994, ISBN 0-517-12065-8), pp. 94, 108.
  2. ^ Womansword: What Japanese Words Say about Women, by Kittredge Cherry (Kodansha, International, 1987, ISBN 4-7700-1655-7), p. 21.
  3. ^ http://www.bodyjewelleryshop.com/body_piercing_information/location_types/surface_nape.cfm

Translations:

Nape

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - nakke

Nederlands (Dutch)
nek

Français (French)
n. - nuque

Deutsch (German)
n. - Genick, Nacken

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - αυχένας, τράχηλος, σβέρκος

Italiano (Italian)
nuca

Português (Portuguese)
n. - nuca (f)

Русский (Russian)
затылок

Español (Spanish)
n. - cogote, nuca

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - nacke

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
项, 颈背

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 項, 頸背

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 목덜미

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 首筋, うなじ

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) مؤخرة العنق‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮אחורי הצוואר, עורף, מפרקת‬


 
 
Related topics:
nucha
pileum (vertebrate zoology)
scruff

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Help us answer these:
Can nape be plural as in napes of their necks or is it always the nape of their necks?
What is the antonym for nape?
What is the nape of a book?

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American Heritage Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
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