wa·tap (w?-täp?, wä-) also wa·ta·pe (-tä?p?)n. A stringy thread made from the roots of various conifers and used by certain Native American peoples in sewing and weaving.[Ojibwa wadab.]American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.watap (wæ?t??p; w??-) n (Textiles) a stringy thread made by North American Indians from the roots of various conifers and used for weaving and sewing[C18: from Canadian French, from Cree watapiy]Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014