From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpadpad1 /pæd/ ●●○ S3 noun [countable] 1 
soft materialTD a thick flat object made of cloth or rubber, used to protect or clean something, or to make something more comfortablepad of Press on the wound with a large pad of cotton wool. Use an abrasive pad for stubborn stains.knee/elbow/shin/shoulder pad (=a pad that you wear to protect a part of your body when you are playing a sport)2 paperTCNWRITE several sheets of paper fastened together, used for writing or drawingwriting/sketch/memo/legal etc pad a box of paints and a sketch pad Keep a telephone pad and a pen to hand. a pad of paper3 flat ground a piece of flat ground where small aircraft can landlaunch/landing/helicopter pad The hospital has built a helicopter pad.4 animal’s footHBA the flesh on the bottom of the foot of a cat, dog etc5 apartment old-fashioned informalDHHOME someone’s apartment or the room where they live6 water plantHBP the leaf of a water lily → launch pad, helicopter pad
soft materialTD a thick flat object made of cloth or rubber, used to protect or clean something, or to make something more comfortablepad of Press on the wound with a large pad of cotton wool. Use an abrasive pad for stubborn stains.knee/elbow/shin/shoulder pad (=a pad that you wear to protect a part of your body when you are playing a sport)2 paperTCNWRITE several sheets of paper fastened together, used for writing or drawingwriting/sketch/memo/legal etc pad a box of paints and a sketch pad Keep a telephone pad and a pen to hand. a pad of paper3 flat ground a piece of flat ground where small aircraft can landlaunch/landing/helicopter pad The hospital has built a helicopter pad.4 animal’s footHBA the flesh on the bottom of the foot of a cat, dog etc5 apartment old-fashioned informalDHHOME someone’s apartment or the room where they live6 water plantHBP the leaf of a water lily → launch pad, helicopter padExamples from the Corpus
pad• a bachelor pad• Changing the subject slightly the brake pads and linings are showing no signs of any wear after over 24,000 miles.• Cover the wound with a cotton pad.• Each pad has an identifying number, and each check is numbered consecutively.• Though the night was cold, I had a foam pad, a blanket and a down bag.• I had to sleep on a foam pad on the floor.• He picked up his pad from beside the chair.• a lily pad• The combination of pad, mobile launcher and flame trench was cooled with a water deluge system.• His knapsack and sketch pad and sleeping bag lay on the floor, candy wrappers scattered around them.• The Boots range also includes specially designed briefs, some of which are ideal for use with Staydry pads.• Wipe the pad over the surface until the wood starts to shine.• He fanned the coals with the pad till the ashes rose up the chimney and the flames jumped.knee/elbow/shin/shoulder pad• Among the items scientists have unearthed are four-inch clay figurines depicting men wearing hip and shoulder pads.• Another time it was a blond streak and shoulder pads.• Gardener's knee pads are a good idea: kneeling on joists can be very uncomfortable.• Cut two little strips to decorate the front of the shoulder pads and press on.writing/sketch/memo/legal etc pad• Police sources revealed earlier that the three-page ransom note had been handwritten on paper from a legal pad found in the home.• Instead, he pulls a legal pad and a calendar from his briefcase and heads for the phone.• Then he got pen and writing pad and sat at the table.• Susan was already off the window scat, looking for a place to tuck her sketch pad.• Topping the heap at 36K is Memo Pad which gives you a scratchpad facility.• Now it's Dominic who hovers selfconsciously, scribbling busily on a yellow legal pad.launch/landing/helicopter pad• Here the air-lock doors of a cargo bay; there a communications nacelle, a launch pad, a service hatch.• Each of the Apollo launch pads was 0.65 square kilometres in size and constructed of heavily reinforced concrete.• Neighbours, the show that was her launch pad, might have to be jettisoned.• But there are signs that the protest may be the launch pad for a powerful and broadly based opposition.• The fully fuelled Saturn V sitting on the launch pad had a total mass some 56 times that of the Apollo spacecraft.• He walked past the helicopter pad and along a sandy road that led toward the church spires.• Such excerpts are important because they provide a highly visible launching pad.padpad2 verb (padded, padding) 1 [intransitive always + adverb/preposition]WALK to walk softly and quietlypad across/through/along etc The cat came padding silently back to its home. She padded barefoot down the stairs.► see thesaurus at walk2 D[transitive] (also pad (something) out British English) to fill or cover something with a soft material in order to protect it or make it more comfortablepad something with something jackets padded out with a soft cotton filling3 [transitive] American EnglishBTRICK/DECEIVE to dishonestly make bills more expensive than they should be padding the bills of Medicare patients4 [transitive] (also pad (something) out) to make a speech or piece of writing longer by adding unnecessary words or details Don’t pad out your answer to make it seem impressive.pad with His autobiography is padded with boring anecdotes.→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
pad• Unless I see at least a hint of contour, I assume a crotch has been padded.• Rhoda padded across the hall into her sister's room.• His hunched figure padded across to the desk in the bay and Swod gestured for the police officer to sit down.• Michelle got out of bed, and padded across to the window.• For the movie, he has to pad his body to make himself look 25 pounds heavier.• His first instinct was to pad on back to his room.• The last chapter is padded out with an extract from an earlier report.• Don't pad out your answer to make it seem impressive.• The cat came padding softly across the kitchen floor, and jumped onto my lap.• They realized their lawyer was padding the court fees.• The A's padded their lead with two more runs.• He padded them out with a torn sheet from sick bay to stop them making any noise.• They are all padded with foam or sponge.pad across/through/along etc• On the right and the left of my track, padding along in parallel silence were bears.• She might under some circumstances be submissive, like these dreary girls you see padding along in the moccasin tracks of hippies.• Nigel in his best jeans and sneakers padded along like a puma.• He padded across the floor and under the huge tarpaulin where Jekub lived.• Polly got out of bed and padded across the room towards it.• We padded through those quiet, leafy roads in utter silence.• His hunched figure padded across to the desk in the bay and Swod gestured for the police officer to sit down.• There was complete silence as we padded through two more streets with walls so bitten away that they looked like lace.From Longman Business Dictionarypadpad /pæd/ noun [countable]OFFICE several sheets of paper fastened together, used for making notesAlways have a pad and pen next to your telephone. → legal padOrigin pad1 (1500-1600) Perhaps from Low German, “bottom surface of the foot” pad2 1. (1500-1600) Low German padden “to go along a path”2. (1800-1900) → PAD1 