sop

1 of 3

noun

ˈsäp 

1

chiefly dialectal : a piece of food dipped or steeped in a liquid

2

: a conciliatory or propitiatory bribe, gift, or gesture

sop

2 of 3

verb

sopped; sopping

transitive verb

1

a

: to steep or dip in or as if in liquid

b

: to wet thoroughly : soak

2

: mop sense 1

SOP

3 of 3

abbreviation

standard operating procedure; standing operating procedure

Synonyms

Noun

• backhander [British]
• boodle
• bribe
• cumshaw
• fix

Verb

• drench
• drown
• impregnate
• macerate
• saturate
• soak
• sodden
• souse
• steep

Examples of sop in a Sentence

Noun

as a sop to the teachers' union for supporting his reelection campaign, the mayor promised to push for the abolition of the residency requirement

Verb

sopped the sponge with the detergent and began scrubbing the floor vigorously

my book fell in the swimming pool and was thoroughly sopped before I could fish it out

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The compromise came in the form of two ‘coefficient places’, spots reserved for teams from those leagues that performed best across Europe’s three competitions in the previous season: a more palatable option, but nevertheless an obvious sop to the same vested interests. —Sam Lee, The Athletic, 12 Dec. 2024

But these are just MacGuffins: sops to the Beltway superfans. —Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 11 Oct. 2024

Verb

But in the Northeast and Midwest, that research points to a less concrete loss, of ice fishing and pond skating and dogsledding, and other parts of life that just aren’t as possible in a sopping wet, muddy winter. —Zoë Schlanger, The Atlantic, 5 Dec. 2024

An ideal combination of a mop-and-bucket and a Swiffer-style wet-or-dry mop, a wet/dry vacuum utilizes the suction and rotation power of a vacuum with just enough moisture to keep things from getting sopping wet. —Sarah Madaus, Architectural Digest, 2 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English soppe, from Old English sopp; akin to Old English sūpan to swallow — more at sup

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

circa 1529, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing sop

• sop up

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Kids Definition

sop

1 of 2 noun

ˈsäp 

1

chiefly dialect : a piece of food dipped or soaked in a liquid (as bread dipped in milk or gravy)

2

: a bribe or gift for soothing or winning approval

sop

2 of 2 verb

sopped; sopping

1

a

: to soak or dip in or as if in liquid

b

: to wet thoroughly

2

: to mop or soak up

sopping up gravy with bread