technical tap

noun

A tap or a slap on a device in a way to either make it work correctly again, or break it completely. For example, hitting a TV to get its reception back, or hitting a jukebox back to life.

Similar
percussive maintenance
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Meanings

nountechnical tap (plural technical taps)

plural technical taps

  1. A tap or a slap on a device in a way to either make it work correctly again, or break it completely. For example, hitting a TV to get its reception back, or hitting a jukebox back to life.

    Synonyms: percussive maintenance

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA tap or a slap on a device in a way to either make it work correctly again, or break it completely. For example, hitting a TV to get its reception back, or hitting a jukebox back to life.

Similar
percussive maintenance
Also see
percussive maintenance

Origin

The phrase became popular in the Second Industrial Revolution, when sometimes vacuum tubes or soldered connections would become loose.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

technical tap. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/technical%20tap

MLA

“technical tap.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/technical%20tap. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “technical tap,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/technical%20tap.

Source: technical tap on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.