bop
bop Lexical Profile
bop Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A catchy, upbeat song or piece of popular music that is enjoyable to dance to (informal).
"The band's latest single is a summer bop that you hear playing everywhere."
A style of jazz developed in the 1940s characterized by fast tempos, complex harmony, and intricate improvisation; bebop.
"The trumpeter became famous in the late 1940s as one of the leading pioneers of bop."
A quick, light blow or tap (informal).
"She gave her brother a playful bop on the head with a rolled-up magazine."
• verb
To dance or move rhythmically to pop or jazz music (informal).
"The crowd was bopping along to the lively beat of the music."
To hit or strike someone or something lightly or playfully (informal).
"The toddler accidentally bopped his sister on the nose with a foam toy."
• Rhymes for bop
Word Origin & Etymology
The sense meaning to strike lightly dates to the early 1930s and is likely imitative in origin. The musical senses arose in the 1940s as a shortening of 'bebop', which imitates the two-note rhythmic syllables used in jazz scat singing.