English

lapboard

From lap + board.

A compound of lap + board

Proto-Germanic *lappô ‘cloth’

Proto-West Germanic *lappō

Old English læppa ‘skirt or flap of a garment’

Middle English lappe

English lap

Proto-Germanic *burdą ‘board’

Proto-West Germanic *bord ‘board’

Old English bord ‘board’

Middle English boord

English board

Today it means

noun A board held on the lap as a simple lap desk.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / lapboard