vape

verb

ˈvāp 

vaped; vaping

transitive + intransitive

: to inhale vapor through the mouth from a usually battery-operated electronic device (such as an electronic cigarette) that heats up and vaporizes a liquid or solid

This electronic cigarette … contains a small reservoir of liquid nicotine solution that is vaporized to form an aerosol mist. The user "vapes," or puffs on the vapor, to get a hit of the addictive nicotine …

—John Tierney

When a person tokes, eats or vapes cannabis, a wave of THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, washes into the brain.

—Laura Sanders

vaper noun

The problem is that little is known about the precise dangers of being in the same space as a vaper indulging their e-habit.

—Amber Dance

Examples of vape in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Concentrate Specific The original Switch is a hybrid device that allows users to shift back and forth between dabbing concentrates and vaping flower. —Emily Earlenbaugh, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024

That vapes come in so many flavors is often the reason people start vaping in the first place. —Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 10 Oct. 2024

Threat level: Younger teenagers who spend more time on social media are more likely to feel disconnected from friends and school and more inclined to vape and use marijuana, according to Rise Above Colorado, a statewide advocacy group behind the survey. —John Frank, Axios, 9 Oct. 2024

For a moment, there is what could be described as an awed pause, before a vaping assistant breaks the spell. —Nathan Heller, Vogue, 17 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

short for vapor entry 1, in reference to the aerosol produced by the cigarette, by analogy with smoke entry 2

First Known Use

1999, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

vape

verb

ˈvāp 

: to inhale vapor through the mouth from a usually battery-operated electronic device that heats up and vaporizes a liquid or solid

Medical Definition

vape

verb

ˈvāp 

vaped; vaping

intransitive verb

: to inhale and exhale vapor from an electronic cigarette or similar device like someone smoking a conventional cigarette

transitive verb

: to inhale or exhale the vapor of

vaper noun

Vapers can inhale huge numbers of very small aerosol particles into the lung's tiniest airways.

—Janet Raloff, Science News