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pad 1 (păd)
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n.
1.
a. A thin, cushionlike mass of soft material used to fill, to give shape, or to protect against jarring, scraping, or other injury.
b. Sports A piece of equipment consisting of shaped cushioning material often attached to a hard outer surface and worn to protect against blows, collisions, or shots.
2. A flexible saddle without a frame.
3. An ink-soaked cushion used to ink a rubber stamp.
4. A number of sheets of paper of the same size stacked one on top of the other and glued together at one end; a tablet.
5.
a. The broad floating leaf of an aquatic plant such as a water lily.
b. The flattened fleshy stem of a cactus such as a prickly pear. Also called paddle1.
6.
a. The fleshy underside of the end of a finger or toe.
b. The cushionlike flesh on the underside of the toes and feet of many animals.
c. The foot of such an animal.
7.
a. A launch pad.
b. A helipad.
8.
a. A keypad.
b. A touchpad.
9. Slang One's living quarters, especially an apartment.
tr.v. pad·ded, pad·ding, pads
1. To line or stuff with soft material.
2. To lengthen or increase, especially with extraneous or false information: pad a lecture with jokes; pad an expense account.
[Origin unknown.]
padless adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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