A narrow fillet or band of cotton or linen; a narrow woven fabric used for strings and the like; as, curtains tied with tape. [1913 Webster]
A tapeline; also, a metallic ribbon so marked as to serve as a tapeline; as, a steel tape. [1913 Webster]

Red tape. See under Red. -- Tape grass (Bot.), a plant (Vallisneria spiralis) with long ribbonlike leaves, growing in fresh or brackish water; -- called also fresh-water eelgrass, and, in Maryland, wild celery. -- Tape needle. See Bodkin, n., 4.

Tape, v. t.

To furnish with tape; to fasten, tie, bind, or the like, with tape;
to record on audio tape or video tape; -- either directly, at the scene of the action tape, or indirectly, as from a broadcast of the action. [PJC]

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OXFORD DICTIONARY

Tape, n. & v.
--n.
1 a narrow strip of woven material for tying up, fastening, etc.
2 a a strip of material stretched across the finishing line of a race. b a similar strip for marking off an area or forming a notional barrier.
3 (in full adhesive tape) a strip of opaque or transparent paper or plastic etc., esp. coated with adhesive for fastening, sticking, masking, insulating, etc.
4 a = magnetic tape. b a tape recording or tape cassette.
5 = tape-measure.
--v.tr.
1 a tie up or join etc. with tape. b apply tape to.
2 (foll. by off) seal or mark off an area or thing with tape.
3 record on magnetic tape.
4 measure with tape.

Idiom

breast the tape win a race. have (or get) a person or thing taped Brit. colloq. understand a person or thing fully. on tape recorded on magnetic tape. tape deck a platform with capstans for using magnetic tape. tape machine a machine for receiving and recording telegraph messages. tape-measure a strip of tape or thin flexible metal marked for measuring lengths. tape-record record (sounds) on magnetic tape. tape recorder apparatus for recording sounds on magnetic tape and afterwards reproducing them. tape recording a recording on magnetic tape.

Derivative

tapeable adj. (esp. in sense 3 of v.). tapeless adj. tapelike adj.

Etymology

OE t{aelig}ppa, t{aelig}ppe, of unkn. orig.

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THESAURUS

Tape

Ace bandage, Band-Aid, Mystik tape, Scotch tape, accouple, accumulate, adhesive tape, agglutinate, amass, application, articulate, assemble, associate, band, bandage, bandaging, batten, belt, bind, binder, bond, book, brace, bracket, bridge, bridge over, bulletin board, calendar, card, cartridge, carve, cassette, cast, catalog, catalog card, cataplasm, cellophane tape, cement, chain, chalk, chalk up, check in, chronicle, clap together, cloth tape, collect, combine, compress, comprise, concatenate, conglobulate, conjoin, conjugate, connect, copulate, cotton, couple, court plaster, cover, cravat, cut, disc, docket, dressing, elastic bandage, electrical transcription, embrace, encompass, engrave, enroll, enscroll, enter, epithem, fascia, file, filing card, fill out, fillet, film, four-tailed bandage, friction tape, gather, gauze, girdle, glue, grave, impanel, incise, include, index, index card, inscribe, insert, join, jot down, knot, lath, lay together, league, library catalog, ligula, ligule, link, lint, list, log, lump together, magnetic tape, make a memorandum, make a note, make an entry, make out, mark down, marry, marshal, masking tape, mass, matriculate, merge, microcard, microdot, microfiche, microfilm, minute, mobilize, motion-picture film, note, note down, pair, phonograph record, piece together, place upon record, plank, plaster, plaster cast, plastic tape, platter, pledget, poll, post, post up, poultice, put down, put in writing, put on paper, put on tape, put together, record, recording, reduce to writing, reel, register, ribband, ribbon, roll into one, roller, roller bandage, rubber bandage, scoreboard, scorecard, scoresheet, seal, set down, shred, slat, sling, slip, solder, span, spill, splice, spline, splint, sponge, spool, stick, stick together, strake, strap, strip, stripe, strop, stupe, tabulate, taenia, take down, take in, tampon, tape cartridge, tape cassette, tape measure, tape recording, tape-record, tapeline, tent, ticker tape, tie, tourniquet, transcription, triangular bandage, unify, unite, video, videotape, wax, weld, wire recording, write, write down, write in, write out, write up, yoke

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ROGET THESAURUS

Tape

Filament

N filament, line, fiber, fibril, funicle, vein, hair, capillament, cilium, cilia, pilus, pili, tendril, gossamer, hair stroke, veinlet, venula, venule, wire, string, thread, packthread, cotton, sewing silk, twine, twist, whipcord, tape, ribbon, cord, rope, yarn, hemp, oakum, jute, strip, shred, slip, spill, list, band, fillet, fascia, ribbon, riband, roll, lath, splinter, shiver, shaving, beard, ramification, strand, filamentous, filamentiferous, filaceous, filiform, fibrous, fibrillous, thread-like, wiry, stringy, ropy, capillary, capilliform, funicular, wire-drawn, anguilliform, flagelliform, hairy, taeniate, taeniform, taenioid, venose, venous.

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