What does raping

About the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline

Need help?

Call 800.656.HOPE (4673) to be connected with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.

How does it work?

When you call 800.656.HOPE (4673), you’ll be routed to a local RAINN affiliate organization based on the first six digits of your phone number. Cell phone callers have the option to enter the ZIP code of their current location to more accurately locate the nearest sexual assault service provider.

Telephone Hotline Terms of Service

How can the hotline help me?

Calling the National Sexual Assault Hotline gives you access to a range of free services including:

Confidential support from a trained staff member
Support finding a local health facility that is trained to care for survivors of sexual assault and offers services like sexual assault forensic exams
Someone to help you talk through what happened
Local resources that can assist with your next steps toward healing and recovery
Referrals for long term support in your area
Information about the laws in your community
Basic information about medical concerns

Is it confidential?

The National Sexual Assault Hotline is a safe, confidential service. When you call the hotline, only the first six numbers of the phone number are used to route the call, and your complete phone number is never stored in our system. Most states do have laws that require local staff to contact authorities in certain situations, like if there is a child or vulnerable adult who is in danger.

While almost all callers are connected directly to a staff member or volunteer at a local sexual assault service provider, a handful of providers use an answering service after daytime business hours. This service helps manage the flow of calls. If all staff members are busy, you may choose to leave a phone number with the answering service. In this case, the number will be confidential and will be given directly to the organization’s staff member for a callback. If you reach an answering service, you can try calling back after some time has passed, or you can choose to call during regular business hours when more staff members are available. You can also access 24/7 help online by visiting online. rainn.org.

Who are the sexual assault service providers?

Sexual assault service providers are organizations or agencies dedicated to supporting survivors of sexual assault. The providers who answer calls placed to the hotline are known as RAINN affiliates. To be part of the National Sexual Assault Hotline, affiliates must agree to uphold RAINN’s confidentiality standards. That means:

Never releasing records or information about the call without the consent of the caller, except when obligated by law
Only making reports to the police or other agencies when the caller consents, unless obligated by law
Agreeing to RAINN’s non-discrimination policy

To learn more about how a provider can become an affiliate of the National Sexual Assault Hotline, visit the Sexual Assault Service Provider information page. Volunteer opportunities for the National Sexual Assault Hotline are coordinated through these local providers. Search for volunteer opportunities near you.

How was the National Sexual Assault Hotline created?

The National Sexual Assault Hotline was the nation’s first decentralized hotline, connecting those in need with help in their local communities. It’s made up of a network of independent sexual assault service providers, vetted by RAINN, who answer calls to a single, nationwide hotline number. Since it was first created in 1994, the National Sexual Assault Hotline (800.656.HOPE and online.rainn.org) has helped more than 3 million people affected by sexual violence.

Before the telephone hotline was created, there was no central place where survivors could get help. Local sexual assault services providers were well equipped to handle support services, but the lack of a national hotline meant the issue did not receive as much attention as it should. In response, RAINN developed a unique national hotline system to combine all the advantages of a national organization with all the abilities and expertise of local programs. One nationwide hotline number makes it easier for survivors to be connected with the help they deserve.

Anyone affected by sexual assault, whether it happened to you or someone you care about, can find support on the National Sexual Assault Hotline. You can also visit online.rainn.org to receive support via confidential online chat.

Rape Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster

1 of 4

ˈrāp

: unlawful sexual activity and usually sexual intercourse carried out forcibly or under threat of injury against a person's will or with a person who is beneath a certain age or incapable of valid consent because of mental illness, mental deficiency, intoxication, unconsciousness, or deception

compare sexual assault, statutory rape

: an outrageous violation

: an act or instance of robbing or despoiling or carrying away a person by force

rape

2 of 4

transitive verb

: to commit rape on

: despoil

archaic : to seize and take away by force

raper noun

rape

3 of 4

: an Old World herb (Brassica napus) of the mustard family grown as a forage crop and for its seeds which yield rapeseed oil and are a bird food

compare canola

rape

4 of 4

: the pomace of grapes left after expression of the juice

Synonyms

Noun (1)

assault
ravishment
sexual assault
violation

Verb

assault
force
ravish
violate

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Example Sentences

Verb He is accused of raping the girl. She was raped by a fellow student.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English, "violent seizure, abduction of a woman with the intent of sexually assaulting her," borrowed from Anglo-French rap, rape, probably borrowed from Medieval Latin rapum, noun derivative of rapiō, rapere "to seize and carry off, abduct a woman with the intent of sexually assaulting her" — more at rape entry 2

Note: Use of this word in its most predominant modern meaning is attested early in legal Anglo-French and British Medieval Latin, though the precise derivational pathways are uncertain. The Latin word may have been based on the Anglo-French word, but both must ultimately be dependent on the classical Latin verb. Note that rapum exists alongside classical Latin raptus, the regularly derived u-stem verbal noun, used in British Medieval Latin in the sense "rape. " Compare ravish.

Verb

Middle English rapen "to abduct a woman with the intent of sexually assaulting her," borrowed from Anglo-French raper, borrowed from Medieval Latin rapiō, rapere "to seize and carry off, abduct a woman with of the intent of sexually assaulting her," going back to Latin, "to seize and carry off, take away by force, carry off a woman with the intent of sexually assaulting her, carry or sweep along, impel forcibly (to a course of conduct), snatch up, gather quickly" — more at rapid entry 1

Note: The verb rapen in its predominant modern sense is rare in Middle English, the more common verb meaning "to rape" being ravisshen "to ravish." The Middle English Dictionary lists rapen with a meaning "to carry off, transport (the soul to heaven)," but all forms cited are for a past participle rapt, rapte, which appears to have been borrowed directly from Medieval Latin raptus, past participle of rapere in this sense (see rapt). See also the note at rape entry 1.

Noun (2)

Middle English, "turnip, Brassica napus," borrowed from Latin rāpa, rāpum "turnip"; akin to Germanic *rōbjōn- "turnip" (whence Middle Dutch & Middle Low German rove, Old High German ruoba, ruoppa), Lithuanian rópė, Greek rháphys, rhápys (all going back to an earlier *rāp(h)-), Church Slavic (eastern) rěpa, Polish rzepa (going back to *rēp-), Welsh erfin "turnips, rape," Breton irvin (going back to *arb-īno-, perhaps metathesized from *rab-), all from a substratal pre-Indo-European word of uncertain form

Note: The Greek forms with fluctuating aspiration, as well as the derivative rháphanos "any of various cultivars of Brassica oleracea, radish," with the suffix -anos, argue for membership in the same pre-Greek substratum as a number of other Greek words; whether the other European forms are borrowed from this etymon or are part of a more general substratum is unclear (see Robert Beekes, Etymological Dictionary of Greek, Brill, 2010, p. 1277). Not related to Old Norse rófa "tail" (see Guus Kroonen, Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Brill, 2013, p. 415).

Noun (3)

French râpe grape stalk

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2b

Noun (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1657, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of rape was in the 14th century

See more words from the same century

Dictionary Entries Near

rape

Rapateaceae

rape

rape butterfly

See More Nearby Entries

Cite this Entry

Style

MLAChicagoAPAMerriam-Webster

“Rape. ” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rape. Accessed 10 Feb. 2023.

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Kids Definition

rape

1 of 3 noun

ˈrāp

: an herb related to the mustards that is grown for animals to graze on and for its seeds which are used as birdseed and as a source of oil

compare canola

rape

2 of 3 verb

archaic : to take away by force

: to have sexual relations with by force

raper noun

rapist

ˈrā-pəst

noun

rape

3 of 3 noun

: an act or instance of raping

Medical Definition

rape

1 of 3 noun

ˈrāp

: a European herb (Brassica napus) of the mustard family grown as a forage crop and for its seeds which yield rapeseed oil and are a bird food

see canola sense 1

rape

2 of 3 transitive verb

: to commit rape on

rape

3 of 3 noun

: unlawful sexual activity and usually sexual intercourse carried out forcibly or under threat of injury against the will usually of a female or with a person who is beneath a certain age or incapable of valid consent

compare sexual assault, statutory rape

Legal Definition

rape

1 of 2 transitive verb

: to commit rape on

raper noun

rapist noun

rape

2 of 2 noun

More from Merriam-Webster on

rape

Nglish: Translation of rape for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of rape for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about rape

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Merriam-Webster unabridged

of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation Article 131.

Rape \ ConsultantPlus

of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation Article 131. Rape

(as amended by the Federal Law of July 27, 2009 N 215-FZ)

(see the text in the previous edition)

, 1. Rape that is, sexual intercourse with the use of violence or with the threat of its use against the victim or other persons, or using the helpless state of the victim -

is punishable by imprisonment for a term of three to six years.

2. Rape:

a) committed by a group of persons, a group of persons by prior agreement or an organized group;

b) accompanied by a threat of murder or infliction of grievous bodily harm, as well as committed with particular cruelty towards the victim or other persons;

c) resulting in infection of the victim with a venereal disease, -

shall be punishable by imprisonment for a term of four to ten years, with or without restraint of liberty for a term of up to two years.

(as amended by Federal Law No. 377-FZ of December 27, 2009)

(see the text in the previous edition)

3. Rape:

a) a minor;

b) negligently causing serious harm to the health of the victim, infecting her with HIV infection or other grave consequences, -

years or without it and with restriction of liberty for up to two years.

(as amended by Federal Law No. 377-FZ of December 27, 2009)

(see the text in the previous edition)

4. Rape:

b) a victim who has not reached the age of fourteen, -

years.

(as amended by Federal Law No. 377-FZ of December 27, 2009)

(see the text in the previous version)

if they are:

a) committed by a person who has a previous conviction for a crime committed against the sexual integrity of a minor;

b) committed against two or more minors;

c) involve the commission of another grave or especially grave crime against a person, with the exception of cases provided for in paragraph "j" of part two of Article 105 of this Code, -

are punishable by imprisonment for a term of fifteen to twenty years with deprivation of the right to occupy certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term up to twenty years, or life imprisonment.

(Part 5 as amended by Federal Law No. 3-FZ of January 28, 2022)

(see the text in the previous edition)

Note. The crimes provided for in paragraph "b" of part four of this Article, as well as paragraph "b" of part four of Article 132 of this Code, also include acts that fall under the signs of crimes provided for in parts three - five of Article 134 and parts two - four of Article 135 of this of the Code, committed against a person under the age of twelve, since such a person, due to his age, is in a helpless state, that is, he cannot understand the nature and significance of the actions performed with him.

(note introduced by Federal Law No. 14-FZ of February 29, 2012)

Rape | it's... What is rape?

Criminal act consisting in sexual intercourse committed with the use of physical violence, threats or using the helpless state of the victim. It is considered one of the most serious and widespread infringements on the sexual freedom of adult women and the sexual integrity of minors. The most frequent rapes are of a heterosexual nature, but bisexuals sometimes commit rape. As a rule, the latter occurs among male convicts, it is also noted among female convicts, for example, in places of isolation.
Proof of rape in virgins is an anatomical violation of the integrity of the hymen.
Defloration is accompanied by tears, most often reaching the base of the hymen, and bleeding, followed by reactive inflammation. In children, tears of the labia, perineum and vaginal ruptures are possible.
Hymen tears never heal until the original appearance is restored. Tears heal by secondary intention with the formation of delicate, sometimes hardly noticeable scar tissue. Sometimes the anatomical structure of the hymen in the victim allows sexual intercourse during rape without violating its integrity.
Physical violence during rape may consist in inflicting any bodily harm on the woman or in depriving her of the possibility of resistance by other means (for example, binding, covering her mouth, etc. ), it may be associated with beatings, attempts to suffocate, injure, etc. When examining the victim, it is possible to find signs of a struggle on the body (bruises, scratches, abrasions, etc.). Their location is sometimes characteristic near the genitals, on the inner surface of the thighs, abdomen, mammary glands, on the neck, face, etc. A suspect or accused of rape must also be examined, since his body may have signs indicating active physical resistance of a woman - bite marks, abrasions, bruises, imprints of vaginal, oral or rectal contents on the head of the penis. Statistics show that rape victims at 90% of cases did not try to physically resist the rapists. The debated question of whether an adult and healthy woman can be raped by one man is resolved by the investigation or the court, taking into account the circumstances of the incident, the ratio of their physical strength, age, intoxication of the victim or the accused, etc. In case of gang rape due to the unexpectedness of the attack and significant superiority of forces, signs of struggle and self-defense on the body of the victim may be absent. The helpless state of the victim, which creates the possibility of rape, may be due to various diseases that cause general weakness or fainting, mental disorders or illnesses, natural or artificial sleep, the use of drugs, in particular strong alcohol intoxication, etc. Depending on the cause, caused a helpless state, the examination of the victim can be carried out by a forensic medical expert with the participation of other specialists - psychiatrists, sexologists, psychologists.
Mental violence during rape is expressed in the threat or intimidation of the victim herself or people close to her, for example, children, and in conditions in which the threat can be immediately implemented, which paralyzes the will of the victim and deprives her of the ability to resist the rapist. In these cases, traces of physical violence, as a rule, do not happen. The consequences of rape can include: pregnancy of the victim, especially a minor, infection of the victim with a venereal disease, AIDS, as well as nervous and mental disorders, such as reactive depression or hysterical neurosis. It is also possible that the raped woman committed suicide in order to cover up the crime. Rape causes a woman not only serious physical but also mental trauma and often contributes to the formation of her negative attitude towards sexual intimacy, which can subsequently affect her family happiness.
An American non-governmental organization's handout How to Deal with the Threat of Rape may be helpful.
Remember the tenants by sight - at least those who live on the same floor as you. Make sure your entire home has good lighting.
If you are alone in the apartment, never open the door until you are sure who is behind it.
Never agree on the phone with a person you do not know. Walk in well-lit areas. In dark and poorly lit neighborhoods, walk in the middle of the street. Avoid walking near thickets of bushes and alleys.
If a car starts moving slowly near you, cross the street and start walking in the opposite direction.
If you feel that someone is following you, feel free to turn around and check your suspicions. Be careful. Caution - not cowardice or cowardice To test the suspicion, try to change the pace of walking or cross the street Use glass, car windows as mirrors.
If you know for sure that someone is following you, look for a safe (crowded or lighted) place, estimate the distance to the nearest safe place. Check to see if your clothing is restrictive Should you take off any part of it so that you can run faster Thinking about all this, do not forget to quicken your pace Make sure that if you run, you will reach a safe place before an intruder overtakes you If you decide to run, do it as quickly and suddenly as possible. At the same time, call for help, shouting - "Fire!" This will find a much faster response among the residents. In principle, flight should not be considered the best way out of the situation. You have two other options as well. By remaining calm and collected, you can try to apply psychological pressure on the alleged rapist. Can you move him with tears? Will he calm down if you act decisively and confidently? Can he believe that you are waiting for your friend in this place? You can feign insanity, feign fainting, or say that you have a dangerous venereal disease.

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