a slender candle 细支小蜡烛 ■a wick coated with wax, used for conveying a flame (用蜡包的)点火媒
a gradual narrowing 逐渐变窄;逐渐变细 the strong taper of her back. 她的后背明显上宽下窄。 [mass noun]a small degree of taper. 稍微向里收拢。
verb
diminish or reduce or cause to diminish or reduce in thickness towards one end (使)成锥形 [no obj.]the tail tapers to a rounded tip. 尾巴逐渐变细成一个绕成圈的尾尖。 [with obj.]David asked my dressmaker to taper his trousers. 大卫要我的裁缝把他的裤子改瘦些。 ■gradually lessen 逐渐减轻 the impact of the dollar's depreciation started to taper off. 美元贬值的冲击开始逐渐减弱。
语源
Old English (denoting any wax candle), dissimilated form (by alteration of p- to t-) of Latin papyrus (see papyrus), the pith of which was used for candle wicks