vamp

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈvamp 

: a woman who uses her charm or wiles to seduce and exploit men

vampish

ˈvam-pish 

adjective

vamp

2 of 4

verb (1)

vamped; vamping; vamps

transitive verb

: to practice seductive wiles on

intransitive verb

: to act like a vamp

vamping for the camera

vamp

3 of 4

noun (2)

1

: the part of a shoe upper or boot upper covering especially the forepart of the foot and sometimes also extending forward over the toe or backward to the back seam of the upper

2

[derivative of vamp entry 4] : a short introductory musical passage often repeated several times (as in vaudeville) before a solo or between verses

vamp

4 of 4

verb (2)

vamped; vamping; vamps

transitive verb

1

a

: to provide (a shoe) with a new vamp

b

: to piece (something old) with a new part : patch

vamp up old sermons

2

: invent, fabricate

vamp up an excuse

intransitive verb

1

: to play a musical vamp

2

: improvise, extemporize

vamper noun

Synonyms

Verb (2)

• concoct
• construct
• contrive
• cook (up)
• devise
• drum up
• excogitate
• fabricate
• invent
• make up
• manufacture
• think (up)
• trump up

Examples of vamp in a Sentence

Verb (2)

political spin doctors who can vamp up a justification for just about anything

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Poker Face’s first-season guest stars vamped it up, too; think of the Mountain Goats front man John Darnielle, longtime friend of series creator Rian Johnson, making his acting debut as a thieving metal guitarist. —Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 7 May 2025

While Izzard vamps up a storm here, sporting effortlessly chic cherry-red lips and nails, many of the roles feel less than fleshed out. —Karen D'souza, Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2025

Noun

On offer for spring 2025 are styles that include a t-strap vamp stiletto heel in lambskin leather sandals, an open-toe wedge sandal in stretch leather — and an easy flat suede slipper with a rounded toe. —Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 13 May 2025

Through John, Sarah meets vamp queen Miriam (Deneuve) and a dangerous flirtation begins. —Jordan Crucchiola, Vulture, 26 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

short for vampire

Noun (2)

Middle English vampe, vaumpe "covering for the foot, upper of a shoe," borrowed from Anglo-French, probably truncated from *vampé, reduced form of avanpié, from avant- "fore-" + pié "foot," going back to Latin ped-, pēs — more at vanguard, foot entry 1

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1918, in the meaning defined above

Verb (1)

circa 1915, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Noun (2)

1914, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1599, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Rhymes for vamp

• amp
• champ
• clamp
• cramp
• damp
• gamp
• lamp
• ramp
• samp
• scamp
• stamp
• tamp