ляп

Etymology

Probably from an onomatopoeic or interjectory root of Proto-Slavic origin. Proposed cognates include (vulgar) ля́па (ljápa, “spot, stain; mistake”); (dialectal) ля́па (ljápa, “slap in the face”, noun), аляповатый (aljapovatyj, “crudely fashioned”), Ukrainian ля́пати (ljápaty, “splash; soil”, verb), ля́пка (ljápka, “blot, smudge”, noun), Belarusian ля́паць (ljápacʹ, “knock; speak harshly”, verb) Chernyshev also postulates a relationship to ла́па (lápa, “paw; big foot”), ла́пaть (lápatʹ, “paw, grope”). A possible relationship to the root in ля́псус (ljápsus, “blunder, slip”) remains to be clarified.