sap1

 
Pronunciation: /sap/

noun

[mass noun]
  • the fluid which circulates in the vascular system of a plant, consisting chiefly of water with dissolved sugars and mineral salts.
  • vigour or energy: the hot, heady days of youth when the sap was rising

verb (saps, sapping, sapped)

[with object]
  • gradually weaken or destroy (a person’s strength or power): our energy is being sapped by bureaucrats and politicians
  • (sap someone of) drain someone of (strength or power): her illness had sapped her of energy and life

Derivatives

sapless

adjective

Origin:

Old English sæp, probably of Germanic origin. The verb (dating from the mid 18th century) is often interpreted as a figurative use of the notion ‘drain the sap from’, but is derived originally from the verb sap2, in the sense 'undermine'