The Collaborative International Dictionary
Knap \Knap\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Knapped; p. pr. & vb. n. Knapping.] [D. knappen to chew, bite, crack, take hold of; prob. of imitative origin.]
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To bite; to bite off; to break short. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. ]
He will knap the spears apieces with his teeth.
--Dr. H. More.He breaketh the bow, and knappeth the spear in sunder.
--Ps. xlvi. 9 (Book of Common Prayer.) To strike smartly; to rap; to snap. [Chiefly Brit.]
--Bacon.
Wiktionary
vb. (present participle of knap English)
WordNet
See knap
Wikipedia
Knapping is the shaping of flint, chert, obsidian or other conchoidal fracturing stone through the process of lithic reduction to manufacture stone tools, strikers for flintlock firearms, or to produce flat-faced stones for building or facing walls, and flushwork decoration. The original Germanic term "knopp" meant strike, shape, or work, so it could theoretically have referred equally well to making a statue or dice. Modern usage is more specific, referring almost exclusively to the hand-tool pressure-flaking process pictured.
Usage examples of "knapping".
If she was going to do some serious flint knapping, she needed an anvil, something to support the stone while she worked it.
Her prodigious research, begun in 1977, has led her to prehistoric sites in Europe to add to her firsthand knowledge of such arts as flint knapping, the construction of snow caves, tanning hides, and gathering and preparing wild foods and medicinal plants and herbs.
He had thought about it the night before, and, recalling how Darvo had taken to flint knapping even as a young boy, he felt that if they could be taught a craft, like flint knapping, they could lead independent and useful lives even though they were crippled.
What frustrations and triumphs had they shared as they both learned the difficult art of knapping flint?
He pausedhe was knapping a flintand looked down at the flat little puddle.
Though their muscular, heavy-boned, and slightly bowed arms were tremendously powerful, they could perform functions as delicate and precise as knapping flint.
Jondalar had asked her to show him Clan techniques for knapping flint once before, and he had been impressed, but he was fascinated to watch her working, in her imagined privacy, with such calm assurance and skill.
The stream had washed down a rich supply of volcanic pebbles, and many of the adults were knapping tools.
They had more advanced knapping techniques, manufacturing a range of flakes and points and burins in addition to the ubiquitous hand-axes.
He picked up a rock he had been knapping, and resumed working on it, steady, patient.
Nearby, in another spot of shade, a brace of other braves squatted, industriously knapping gunflints from a core of the rock, smoothing and perfecting their creations by use of antler picks and small, heavy mallets.
They carried flint knapping tools and the heavy weapons and some stones that might or might not be hunting charms.