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diaper

/ˈdaɪ(ə)pər/
/ˈdaɪpə/
IPA guide

Other forms: diapers

A diaper is what babies wear before they’re potty trained. It’s a white cloth or other disposable fabric that’s folded up between the baby’s legs to catch the poop and whatnot. Awwww, isn’t that cute?

In many countries, a diaper is also called a "nappy.” A baby can wear a diaper, but you can also diaper a baby, which means to put a diaper on. The word diaper comes from an Old French root, diaspre meaning "ornamental cloth." Over time it also came to mean a "towel or napkin" and by the 1830s, it had the modern sense of a cloth used to swaddle a baby's bottom.

Definitions of diaper
  1. noun
    garment consisting of a folded cloth drawn up between the legs and fastened at the waist; worn by infants to catch excrement
    synonyms: napkin, nappy
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    type of:
    garment
    an article of clothing
  2. noun
    a fabric (usually cotton or linen) with a distinctive woven pattern of small repeated figures
    see moresee less
    type of:
    cloth, fabric, material, textile
    artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or crocheting natural or synthetic fibers
Pronunciation
US
/ˈdaɪ(ə)pər/
UK
/ˈdaɪpə/
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