From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishnapnap1 /næp/ ●●○ noun 1 [countable]SLEEP a short sleep, especially during the dayhave/take a nap I usually take a nap after lunch. an afternoon nap2 [singular]TIM the soft surface on some cloth and leather, made by brushing the short fine threads or hairs in one direction → pile1(7)COLLOCATIONSverbshave/take a napI took a nap after lunch.ADJECTIVES/NOUN + nap a short/little napA short nap may make you feel better.a quick/brief napI like to have a brief nap in the afternoon.an afternoon/morning napShe has her afternoon nap at about two.a two-hour/twenty minute etc napAt age four, she was still having a two-hour nap every day.a power nap (=a short sleep at work, that gives you more energy and concentration)Try taking a power nap before the meeting.a catnap (=a very short sleep)I envied her ability to take catnaps at any time of the day.nap + NOUNnap timeYou can always tell when it's a baby's nap time because they start getting irritable.
Examples from the Corpus
nap• The muscle work comes after breakfast, then again after lunch and a nap.• Two of them were only having a nap.• He went to the library at noon and sat, idly reading, wanting a nap, forgetting to have lunch.• He waited until Lois came upstairs for her little afternoon nap.• He leads me to a dormitory, where eight boys are settling down into one big bed for their afternoon nap.• Often even young children can't have a comfortable nap during the day.• As I approached the veranda, three people got up from what appeared to be an early evening nap and came outside.• These raised the nap on the cloth, which could then be cropped with shears to give it a smoother finish.have/take a nap• Why don't you just put your head down and have a nap while Mark and I chat a few things over.• Dave took a nap on the ride home.• But between two o'clock and three-thirty, Flora took a nap.• Take a shower, have a nap?• Following that kind of meal, the two main options are to take a nap or a walk.• Janir, I have to take a nap.• I was to take a nap in his house that afternoon.• We were very quiet because some people were taking a nap.napnap2 verb (napped, napping) [intransitive] 1 → be caught napping2 SLEEPto sleep for a short time during the day→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
nap• This double-barreled ap-proach should catch our competitors napping.• Too alert to sleep, I fill my notebook with sketches of the nubble under the quarter moon while Margaret naps.• But Springsteen wouldn't catch me napping again.• But many tourists waste their first day abroad anyway, napping either in a hotel bed or a theater seat.• He thought he might nap for a while, then read some of it, whatever the hour.• Here and there, they nap -- half an hour, an hour, rarely longer.• One was asleep, napping under a trilby hat pulled down over his eyes.Origin nap1 1. (1300-1400) → NAP22. (1400-1500) Middle Dutch noppe nap2 Old English hnappian 