rap

An unfair accusation, punishment, or reputation. Tommy was sent to jail on a bum rap because of his prior criminal history, but we know he didn't rob that bank—he was with us the day it happened! He didn't get elected because he got such a bum rap from the mainstream media during his campaign.

A quick, minor punishment that serves as a warning. The public was outraged that the company only received a rap across the knuckles from the EPA after being caught illegally dumping chemicals in the river.

A quick, minor punishment intended to serve as a warning. The public was outraged that the company only received a rap on the knuckles from the regulatory agency after being caught illegally dumping chemicals in the river.

A quick, minor punishment intended to serve as a warning. The public was outraged that the company only received a rap over the knuckles from the regulatory agency after being caught illegally dumping chemicals in the river.

A list of a person's criminal history. The suspect had a rap sheet a mile long due to his numerous run-ins with the police.

Sl. to evade conviction and punishment (for a crime). He was charged with drunk driving, but he beat the rap. The police hauled Tom in and charged him with a crime. His lawyer helped him beat the rap.

to tap on something to attract someone's attention. Who is that rapping at my door? Someone is rapping at the window, trying to get my attention. I will rap on her window and try to wake her.

to strike someone on the knuckles. As punishment, she rapped him across the knuckles. The teacher rapped the student on the knuckles.

to tap out the rhythm of something on something. Try to rap the rhythm out on the table. He rapped out the rhythm on the table.

Sl. to have a chat with someone or a group of people. (Old.) Come in, sit down, and rap with me for a while. Let's get together and rap with one another sometime.

(for someone) Inf. to take the blame [for doing something] for someone else. I don't want to take the rap for you. John robbed the bank, but Tom took the rap for him.

Inf. to take the blame for (doing) something. I won't take the rap for the crime. I wasn't even in town. Who'll take the rap for it? Who did it?

to not be interested in someone or something not give a shit (about somebody/something) The beginning was so boring, I really didn't give a damn what happened in the rest of the movie. We didn't give a tinker's damn about justice.

to avoid being punished People think that if you have enough money and high-priced lawyers, you can generally beat the rap.

to be blamed or punished unfairly for something you have not done Reublinger has often taken the rap for bad decisions made by his boss.

to escape being punished There's no way he can beat the rap now. No lawyer can save him.

blame or punishment that is not fair Teachers are getting a bum rap from people who say they don't work hard enough. She was sent up to the penitentiary on a bum rap.

a punishment which is not very severe but which warns you not to behave that way again The company received a rap over the knuckles from the Food and Drug Administration. Her remarks earned her a sharp rap across the knuckles from the Prime Minister.

information kept by the police about someone's criminal activities The gunman's rap sheet had a long list of weapons and narcotics offenses.

to be blamed or punished for something bad that has happened, especially when it is not your fault (often + for ) I'm not going to take the rap for someone else's mistakes.

Escape punishment; win acquittal. For example, The youngsters were caught shoplifting, but somehow they were able to beat the rap. The rap in this idiom means "the legal charge against one." [Slang; 1920s]

A false accusation or conviction; also, unfair criticism or action. For example, He claimed he was in prison on a bum rap, or The theater critics gave her last play a bum rap. This expression originated in the 1920s as underworld slang, and by the mid-1900s it was also used figuratively for other kinds of injustice.

Also, not give a fig or hang or hoot or rap or shit . Not care about, be indifferent to, as in I don't give a damn about him, or She doesn't give a fig if he comes or not. The nouns in all these terms signify something totally worthless. Although probably in oral use for much longer, damn is first recorded in this negative form in the late 1700s and the worthless item it is used to denigrate is a curse. Fig has denoted something small and worthless since about 1400, and hang since the mid-1800s; hoot has been used for the smallest particle since the later 1800s; rap, also for the smallest particle, since the first half of the 1800s, and shit, for excrement, since about 1920. All but the first of these terms are colloquial and the last (using shit) is vulgar.

Reprimand, as in If I'd seen John take that last piece of cake, I'd have rapped his knuckles. This term transfers a physical punishment to a verbal one. [Late 1600s]

Be punished or blamed for something, as in I don't want to take the rap for Mary, who forgot to mail the check in time, or Steve is such a nice guy that he's always taking the rap for his colleagues. This slangy idiom originally used rap in the sense of "a criminal charge," a usage still current. By the mid-1900s it was also used more broadly.

To escape punishment or be acquitted of a charge.

To accept punishment or take the blame for an offense or error.