diaper
pronunciation
How to pronounce diaper in British English:
UK [ˈdaɪəpə(r)]
How to pronounce diaper in American English:
US [ˈdaɪpər]
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- Noun:
- garment consisting of a folded cloth drawn up between the legs and fastened at the waist; worn by infants to catch excrement
- a fabric (usually cotton or linen) with a distinctive woven pattern of small repeated figures
Word Origin
- diaper
- diaper: [14] The notion underlying diaper is of extreme whiteness. It comes ultimately from Byzantine Greek díaspros, which was a compound formed from the intensive prefix diaand áspros ‘white’. (Aspros itself has an involved history: it started life as Latin asper ‘rough’ – source of English asperity – which was applied particularly to bas-relief on carvings and coins; it was borrowed into Byzantine Greek and used as a noun to designate silver coins, and their brightness and shininess led to its reconversion into an adjective, meaning ‘white’.) Díaspros appears originally to have been applied to ecclesiastical vestments, and subsequently to any shiny fabric.When the word first entered English, via medieval Latin diasprum and Old French diapre, it referred to a rather rich silk fabric embellished with gold thread, but by the 16th century it was being used for less glamorous textiles, of white linen, with a small diamond-shaped pattern. The specific application to a piece of such cloth used as a baby’s nappy (still current in American English) seems to have developed in the 16th century.=> asperity
- diaper (n.)
- mid-14c., "fabric with a repeated pattern of figures," from Old French diaspre "ornamental cloth; flowered, patterned silk cloth," perhaps via Medieval Latin diasprum from Medieval Greek diaspros "thoroughly white," or perhaps "white interspersed with other colors," from dia- (see dia-) + aspros "white." Aspros originally meant "rough," and was applied to the raised parts of coins (among other things), and thus was used in Byzantine Greek to mean "silver coin," from which the bright, shiny qualities made it an adjective for whiteness. Modern sense of "underpants for babies" is continuous since 1837, but such usage has been traced back to 1590s.
- diaper (v.)
- late 14c., "to put a small, repeated pattern on," from Old French diaprer, variant of diasprer, from diaspre (see diaper (n.)). Meaning "to put a diaper on" (a baby) is attested by 1951. Related: Diapered; diapering.
Example
- 1. Now I can help diaper him .
- 2. Thus , the diaper change as quickly and smoothly as possible , to minimize distress .
- 3. A diaper genie and lidded hamper should solve some of the mess , don 't you think ?
- 4. Apply it to a baby 's diaper rash or directly to any eruptions on your own skin for quick relief .
- 5. Try as you might , it 's impossible not to discuss the color , texture and consistency of your baby 's diaper bombs .