snap

Formssnaps, snapping, snapped

Pluralsnaps

1. 1
   verbtransitive or intransitive

   To break suddenly and sharply, or cause something to break this way, often with a cracking sound.

   You can snap a dry branch with your bare hands.

   The mast snapped in the storm and crashed onto the deck.

   UsageWorks both ways: you snap a stick, and the stick snaps; often snap in half or snap off.

   Similarbreak, crack, fracture

   Note

   Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790) uses snap short, describing a weapon that breaks off clean in the hand. The past tense is snapped; the older spelling snapt is obsolete. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • Edmund Burke wrote Reflections on the Revolution in France, first published in 1790. en.wikipedia.org
   • Burke uses 'snap short' in the image of a weapon breaking in its user's hand; the weapon is metaphorical in context. en.wikisource.org
   • Snapt is an obsolete past-tense spelling of snap. en.wiktionary.org
2. 2
   take a photoverbtransitive

   To take a photograph by releasing a camera's shutter.

   The photographer snapped several portraits before the light faded.

   Tourists snap the monument from every possible angle.

   UsageThe object can be the picture or what is in it: snap a few pictures, snap the monument.

   Similarphotograph, shoot, capture

   Note

   The verb carries the quickness of the snapshot, and releasing a shutter can make a snapping sound. The object can be the picture, as when Paul Bigland arrives at a station in time to snap a few pictures (Rail, 2020). Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • Paul Bigland's 2020 Rail article describes arriving at a station in time to 'snap a few pictures'. en.wiktionary.org
3. 3
   verbintransitive

   To speak or say something suddenly and sharply, usually in anger or irritation.

   He snapped at his assistant over a minor mistake.

   Tired managers often snap at their staff under pressure.

   UsageSay snap at someone; it can also report the words: 'Leave it,' she snapped.

   Similarbark, snarl, growl

4. 4
   lose controlverbintransitive

   To suffer a mental breakdown, typically after prolonged tension or stress.

   The detective snapped under the weight of the unsolved case.

   People can snap when stress builds with no release.

   UsageCan stand alone or be followed by a phrase such as under pressure: he just snapped, or he snapped under pressure.

   Similarcrack, break, flip

   Note

   The mind gives way the way a rope does under load. The image comes from breaking under strain, and the strain is usually long tension. In The A-Team (1983) the single word carries the whole diagnosis: 'Snapped. No doubt about it.' Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • The cited A-Team episode first aired in 1983. en.wikipedia.org
   • “Snapped. No doubt about it.” occurs in The A-Team, spoken by Colonel Lynch about Murdock. en.wiktionary.org
5. 5
   click fingersverbtransitive

   To make a cracking sound by pressing the thumb against a finger and suddenly releasing it against the palm.

   The conductor snapped his fingers to set the tempo.

   Dancers snap their fingers in time with the beat.

   Similarclick

   Note

   The fingers are usually the object, and there are two common ways to do it. One is to press the thumb against a finger and release it so the finger strikes the palm. The other is to bring the index finger down hard onto the middle finger and thumb. Walter Scott's Guy Mannering (1815) has Mac-Morlan snap his fingers repeatedly.

6. 6
   nouncountable or uncountable

   A sudden, sharp breaking or cracking, especially of something under tension such as a string, cable, or bone, or the sharp sound this makes.

   The snap of the wishbone signaled the end of the meal.

   A sudden snap from the fireplace made everyone jump.

   Similarcrack, pop, break

7. 7
   footballnouncountable or uncountable

   In American football, the backward pass or handoff of the ball from the ground that puts it into play; a hike.

   The receiver went in motion just before the snap.

   A clean snap let the holder set the ball for the field goal.

   Similarhike

   Note

   A football term with its own arithmetic: snaps are counted, and a player's workload is measured by how many he is on the field for. Ken Belson and Ben Shpigel, in their 2020 N.F.L. draft analysis, credit Simmons with at least 100 snaps at five positions. The ball is the object of the verb form, and hike is the interchangeable synonym. Source

   Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • Ken Belson and Ben Shpigel's 2020 NFL draft analysis credits Simmons with at least 100 snaps at five positions. en.wiktionary.org
8. 8
   verbintransitive

   To move or shift suddenly into a new position.

   Her head snapped toward the door at the sound of breaking glass.

   Dancers snap into formation the moment the music starts.

   UsageSet phrase snap to attention; also snap into formation or position.

   Similarjerk, whip

   Note

   Movement without breakage: the suddenness of the word survives, but the fracture does not. It also describes a quick cut from one thing to the next, as when camera views snap from scene to scene in Harry Blank's Deadlined (2024). Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • Harry Blank wrote the cited passage in Deadlined. scp-wiki.wikidot.com
   • The text describes camera views snapping between scenes. scp-wiki.wikidot.com
9. 9
   photonouncolloquialcountable or uncountable

   A photograph, especially one taken quickly or informally.

   Grandma kept a shoebox full of old vacation snaps.

   He uploaded a snap of the team to the website.

   Similarphoto, snapshot, picture, shot, photograph

10. 10
    hastyadjectivebefore a noun

    Done, made, or decided suddenly, often without prior warning or careful thought.

    The board held a snap vote before anyone could object.

    His snap judgments of strangers often turned out to be wrong.

    UsageCommon pairs: snap judgment, snap decision, snap election, snap vote.

    Similarhasty, quick, sudden, rash, impromptu

    Oppositeconsidered, deliberate, careful

    Note

    An adjective that stands only before its noun: a snap judgment, a snap decision, a snap diagnosis, a snap political convention. It does not follow a verb (not 'the decision was snap'), and it normally has no degrees. Still, the Kansas City Medical Index in 1889 risks 'a very snap judgment'. Source

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • The 1889 journal contains the wording 'a very snap judgment'. en.wiktionary.org
    • The contemporary title was Kansas City Medical Index; the consolidation producing the Index-Lancet occurred in 1899. ldsgenealogy.com
11. 11
    take eagerlyverbintransitive

    To make an eager attempt to seize or take hold of something.

    Any sensible applicant would snap at an offer like that.

    He snapped at the chance to join the expedition to Antarctica.

    UsageSay snap at a chance or offer; snap up a bargain is the related phrasal verb.

    Similarjump, grab

    Note

    The eager, figurative cousin of the biting sense. What gets snapped at here is a chance, an offer or a bargain, and the grab is welcome. Snapping at a chance is approving; snapping at a person is hostile, whether with teeth or with words. The object tells the reader which meaning is meant.

12. 12
    nouncountable or uncountable

    A fastening device that closes with a distinctive snapping sound.

    The gloves fastened at the wrist with a single snap.

    He replaced the broken snap on his backpack strap.

    Similarpopper

13. 13
    verbintransitive

    To fasten, close, or lock into place with a sharp click, or to fasten something in this way, often with a snap fastener.

    The phone case snaps neatly around the edges.

    The pieces snap into place with a satisfying click.

    UsageCommon frames: snap into place, snap shut, snap together.

    Similarclick, clip, fasten, lock

14. 14
    verbintransitive

    (Of an animal) to bite or try to bite something with a quick, snatching movement of the jaws, teeth, or beak.

    The turtle snapped at the stick the boy dangled over the pond.

    Cornered animals will snap at anyone who comes too close.

    Similarbite, nip

15. 15
    easy tasknounslangcountable or uncountable

    Something that is easy or takes very little effort.

    With the right tools, the repair was a snap.

    She found the new software a snap to learn.

    UsageUsually a snap, often a snap to + verb: a snap to learn.

    Similarbreeze, cinch, doddle

    Note

    Slang that rates a job by how little it asks of you. Henry Blake Fuller's Bertram Cope's Year (1919) applies it to a literature course anyone can grasp. Clive Selwood's All the Moves (but None of the Licks) (2003) sets it beside cinch, a near-synonym. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

    • Henry Blake Fuller wrote Bertram Cope's Year, first published in 1919. en.wikisource.org
    • The novel applies 'snap' to an English literature course presented as easy to grasp. gutenberg.org
    • Clive Selwood wrote All the Moves (but None of the Licks). agenciabalcells.com
    • Selwood's book uses 'snap' alongside 'cinch' for an easy job. en.wiktionary.org
16. 16
    momentnouncountable or uncountable

    A very short period of time (the moment it takes to snap the fingers) or a task accomplished that quickly.

    The technician had the system back online in a snap.

    He promised to return in a snap and was gone before I could reply.

    UsageIn a snap means very quickly: back in a snap.

    Similarflash, jiffy, moment, instant, second

17. 17
    cold spellnouncountable or uncountable

    A brief, sudden spell of a particular kind of weather, especially cold.

    An early cold snap caught the orchard owners off guard.

    After a week of mild weather, a sudden cold snap froze the pipes in our basement.

    UsageAlmost always in the phrase a cold snap.

    Similarspell

18. 18
    finger clicknouncountable or uncountable

    The act of snapping the fingers to produce a sharp clicking sound.

    A sharp snap of her fingers silenced the room.

    He kept time with the rhythmic snap of his thumb and finger.

    UsageUsually a snap of your fingers.

    Similarclick

19. 19
    verbtransitive

    In American football, to start a play by passing or handing the ball backward from its spot on the ground, also called hiking it.

    In the shotgun formation, the center must snap the ball to a quarterback standing several yards back.

    Nervous in his first game, the rookie snapped the ball high over the punter's head.

    Similarhike

    Note

    Every play from scrimmage starts with this act. The center sends the ball back between his legs, either straight into a quarterback's hands or through the air to a player waiting farther back. As a noun, the pass itself is a snap as well. The quarterback's call that sets the moment is known as the snap count. Source

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • A snap starts a play from scrimmage. operations.nfl.com
    • The passage describes the usual center's snap, which can be handed or thrown backward between the legs. en.wikipedia.org
    • The quarterback's signal determining when the ball is snapped is the snap count. operations.nfl.com
20. 20
    nouncountable or uncountable

    A picture or video message sent or shared through the Snapchat app.

    She tried to save the snap, but the video vanished the moment it finished playing.

    He added a few snaps to his story so his followers could see the concert.

    UsageSay send someone a snap or add snaps to your story. The message is also written Snap.

    Note

    Disappearance is the whole point here. The app sells these messages on the promise that they delete themselves instead of being stored, a promise some reports were already questioning by 2015, and one added to a story normally stays up for a day. Unlike the everyday word for a photo, a snap in this sense is made in Snapchat, though a public link can carry it outside the app.

21. 21
    verb

    Alternative letter-case form of Snap, meaning to send someone a picture or video message through the Snapchat app.

    When you reach the trailhead, snap me a photo of the map, and I'll screenshot it before it disappears.

    My friends snap each other short disappearing videos from every concert they go to.

    UsageTakes the person, then the picture: snap me a photo; with no person named, snap a photo usually means take one.

22. 22
    nouncountable or uncountable

    Brisk, vigorous energy and a decisive quality in the way something is done.

    The editor cut two scenes to give the second act more snap.

    Even at eighty, he answered every question with the snap of a man half his age.

    Similarenergy, vigour, zest, verve, punch

23. 23
    verbtransitive

    To make something produce a sharp, sudden crack or click, especially by shutting it quickly.

    The trainer never touched the horse; she only had to snap the whip above its head.

    Checking the time, he snapped his pocket watch shut and rose to leave.

    Similarcrack, click

    Note

    Whatever is snapped here comes through whole: snapping a whip makes it crack, snapping a fastener closes it. When Conan Doyle's Mr. Peeble announces time is up by snapping his watch, he shuts its case, and a bird snapping its beak at newcomers is issuing a challenge, not trying to bite. The object usually tells this apart from the breaking sense, where a snapped stick does not survive. Source

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • Conan Doyle's Mr. Peeble announces that time is up while snapping his watch. gutenberg.net.au
    • The bird in the cited example snaps its beak as a challenge to arriving birds. en.wiktionary.org
24. 24
    verbintransitive

    In a graphical user interface, to leap into a set place determined by the position of another element, such as the screen's edge.

    With the grid turned on, every shape you draw will snap to the nearest gridline.

    The slider handle snaps to the closest marked value as soon as you let go.

    UsageFollowed by to: snap to grid, snap to the edge.

    Similarjump

    Note

    A small courtesy of drawing and layout software: a dragged item jumps the last bit of the way into place once it comes near a grid, a guide, the screen's edge or another object. The behavior itself is often just called snapping. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • Software snapping automatically positions a dragged object near a grid, guide or another object. en.wikipedia.org
    • Dragging an interface element to the screen's edge can trigger snapping. support.microsoft.com
25. 25
    interjectionAustraliaBritish

    Used to point out that you have one exactly like someone else's, or more broadly that the same goes for you.

    She walked into the party, spotted her colleague in an identical dress and laughed, "Snap!"

    "I'm off to Cornwall for the bank holiday." "Snap! We've booked a cottage near Padstow."

    Similarditto

    Note

    The shout that claims a matching pair in the children's card game has moved off the table and into everyday coincidence. It is called out on its own, with the match named afterward: Snap! We've both got pink buckets and spades. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • In the children's card game snap, players shout 'snap' to claim matching cards. en.wiktionary.org
    • The exclamation marking an everyday coincidence extends the card-game cry. en.wiktionary.org
26. 26
    nouncountable or uncountable

    A bean whose tender young pods are eaten, such as the common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris; a snap bean.

    At the farmers market, she bit into a raw snap to check that the beans were tender.

    She cooked the snaps slowly with a little bacon and onion, the way her mother always had.

27. 27
    nouncolloquialcountable or uncountableabbreviationclipping

    Short for Snapchat: a person's username or account on the app.

    He finally worked up the nerve to ask for her snap at the end of the night.

    Everyone drop your snap in the group chat so we can all add each other.

    UsageWhat's your snap? asks for your Snapchat username, while send me a snap asks for a photo or video message.

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