drape

Etymology

From Middle English drape (“a drape”, noun), from Old French draper (“to drape; to full cloth”), from drap (“cloth, drabcloth”), from Late Latin drappus, drapus (“drabcloth, kerchief”), a word first recorded in the Capitularies of Charlemagne, probably from Frankish *drapi, *drāpi (“that which is fulled, drabcloth”, literally “that which is struck or for striking”), from Proto-Germanic *drapiz (“a strike, hit, blow”) and Proto-Germanic *drēpiz (“intended for striking, to be beaten”), both from *drepaną (“to beat, strike”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰreb- (“to beat, crush, make or become thick”). Cognate with English drub (“to beat”), North Frisian dreep (“a blow”), Low German drapen, dräpen (“to strike”), German treffen (“to meet”), Swedish dräpa (“to slay”). More at drub.

noun

1. A curtain; a drapery.
2. (textiles) The way in which fabric falls or hangs.
3. (US) A member of a youth subculture distinguished by its sharp dress, especially peg-leg pants (1950s: e.g. Baltimore, MD). Antonym: square.
4. A dress made from an entire piece of cloth, without having pieces cut away as in a fitted garment.

verb

1. (transitive) To cover or adorn with drapery or folds of cloth, or as with drapery.
   to drape a bust, a building, etc.
   The whole people were still draped professionally. 1840, Thomas De Quincey, Theory of Greek Tragedy
   These starry blossoms, pure and white, / Soft falling, falling, through the night, / Have draped the woods and mere. a. 1892, George Washington Bungay, The Artists of the Air
   The pair sat before a brilliant gold Buddha statue inside the ornate temple, built 150 years ago by the former Thai King – the supreme patriarch barefoot and draped in orange robes as they spoke. 2019-11-21, “Pope Francis meets Thai Buddhist patriarch on visit promoting religious peace”, in The Straits Times, SPH Digital News, retrieved 2019-11-22
2. (transitive) To spread over, cover.
   I draped my towel over the radiator to dry.
3. To rail at; to banter.
   1672-679, William Temple, Memoirs At my Arrival , the King asked me many questions about my Journey, about the Congress, draping us for spending him so money
4. To make cloth.
5. To design drapery, arrange its folds, etc., as for hangings, costumes, statues, etc.
6. To hang or rest limply.