decoration. The term "knap"(1500s) was originally onomatopoeic and meant "strike with a sharp sound" (with the k- pronounced) and later shifted to mean "to shape or work by sharp strikes". Modern usage is more specific, referring almost exclusively to the free hand percussion process pictured. It is distinguished from the more general verb "chip" (to break up into small pieces, or unintentionally break off a piece of something) and is different from "carve" (removing only part of a face), and "cleave" (breaking along a natural plane).

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