Added 9 October 2026
dewlap
/ˈdu.læp/ noun
In Latin: paleāria Wiktionary
noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about dewlap at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
Origin
From Middle English dewlappe. The first element may be dew (and if not, seems to have been altered by folk etymology to resemble it); the second element is lap (“loose fabric”), Old English læppa (“a loose hanging piece”); compare jellop and jowlop (from jowl + lap), and dewclaw. Compare old Norwegian and Danish doglæp (the modern Danish word for "dew" is dug, but compare Old Norse dǫgg (“dew”) and Norwegian dogg). Old English instead terms such skin the frǣtlæppa (whence Middle English fresh-lappe).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)