1
chiefly dialectal
: a piece of food dipped or steeped in a liquid
2
: a conciliatory or propitiatory bribe, gift, or gesture
standard operating procedure; standing operating procedure
Examples of sop in a Sentence
Noun
as a sop to the teachers' union for supporting his reelection campaign, the mayor promised to push for the abolition of the residency requirement
Verb
sopped the sponge with the detergent and began scrubbing the floor vigorously
my book fell in the swimming pool and was thoroughly sopped before I could fish it out
Recent Examples on the Web
Stephen Mihm, Mercury News, 5 Aug. 2025
This being a French toy store, Arthaud does offer the occasional sop to adults.
—Shauna Lyon, New Yorker, 4 July 2025
Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 22 Oct. 2025
Sandberg was there wandering around the clubhouse sopping wet from a mixture of champagne, beer and rain water along with other Cub greats, protected by a yellow rain slicker.
—Barry M. Bloom, Sportico.com, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sop
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Noun
Most critics of the legislation have assumed that this was a sop to domestic sugar interests, never realizing the role that ADM and Big Corn played in the legislation.
—Stephen Mihm, Mercury News, 5 Aug. 2025
This being a French toy store, Arthaud does offer the occasional sop to adults.
—Shauna Lyon, New Yorker, 4 July 2025
Verb
Wring out the mop and make sure the mop is not sopping wet.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 22 Oct. 2025
Sandberg was there wandering around the clubhouse sopping wet from a mixture of champagne, beer and rain water along with other Cub greats, protected by a yellow rain slicker.
—Barry M. Bloom, Sportico.com, 1 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sop
Cite this Entry
“Sop.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sop. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sop
1 of 2 noun1
chiefly dialect
: a piece of food dipped or soaked in a liquid (as bread dipped in milk or gravy)
2
: a bribe or gift for soothing or winning approval
sop
2 of 2 verb
sopped; sopping
1
a
: to soak or dip in or as if in liquid
b
: to wet thoroughly
2
: to mop or soak up
sopping up gravy with bread
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