tip

[ tip ]

/ tɪp /

noun

a slender or pointed end or extremity, especially of anything long or tapered: the tips of the fingers.

the top, summit, or apex: the tip of the mountain.

a small piece or part, as of metal or leather, forming or covering the extremity of something: a cane with a rubber tip.

Also called tip-in, tip-on. an insert, as an illustration, map, or errata slip, pasted to a page of a book, magazine, etc., usually along the binding margin.

a small, delicate tool made of fine hair cemented between two cards, for applying gold leaf.

verb (used with object), tipped, tip·ping.

to furnish with a tip.

to serve as or form the tip of.

to mark or adorn the tip of.

to remove the tip or stem of (berries or certain fruits or vegetables).

to frost the ends of (hair strands): I'm having my hair cut and tipped tomorrow.

Verb Phrases

tip in, Bookbinding. to paste the inner margin of (a map, illustration, or other plate) into a signature before gathering.

Origin of tip

1175–1225; Middle English; compare Dutch, Low German, Danish tip, Swedish tipp, German zipf- in Zipfel tip

OTHER WORDS FROM tip

tip·less, adjective

Words nearby tip

tinwork, tinworks, tiny, tiny tim, tio tom, tip, tip and run, tip of the iceberg, tip off, tip one's hand, tip sheet

Definition for tip (2 of 5)

tip ²

[ tip ]

/ tɪp /

verb (used with object), tipped, tip·ping.

to cause to assume a slanting or sloping position; incline; tilt.

to overturn, upset, or overthrow (often followed by over).

to remove or lift (one's hat or cap) in salutation.

British. to dispose of by dumping: The dustmen tipped the rubbish on the municipal dump.

verb (used without object), tipped, tip·ping.

to assume a slanting or sloping position; incline.

to tilt up at one end and down at the other; slant.

to be overturned or upset: The car tipped into the ditch.

to tumble or topple (usually followed by over): The lamp on the table tipped over.

noun

the act of tipping.

the state of being tipped.

British.

a dump for refuse, as that from a mine.
Informal. an untidy place, especially a room: They must have packed and left in a rush, because the place is an absolute tip.

Origin of tip

1300–50; earlier tipen, Middle English typen to upset, overturn

OTHER WORDS FROM tip

tip·pa·ble, adjective un·tip·pa·ble, adjective

Definition for tip (3 of 5)

tip ³

[ tip ]

/ tɪp /

noun

a small present of money given directly to someone for performing a service or menial task; gratuity: He gave the waiter a dollar as a tip.

a piece of private or secret information, as for use in betting, speculating, or writing a news story: a tip from a bookie.

a useful hint or idea; a basic, practical fact: tips on painting.

verb (used with object), tipped, tip·ping.

to give a gratuity to.

verb (used without object), tipped, tip·ping.

to give a gratuity: She tipped lavishly.

Verb Phrases

tip off, Informal.

to supply with private or secret information; inform.
to warn of impending danger or trouble; caution beforehand: The moonshiners had been tipped off that they were about to be raided.

Origin of tip

First recorded in 1600–10; perhaps special use of tip⁴

SYNONYMS FOR tip

3 suggestion, pointer.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR tip ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM tip

tip·less, adjective tip·pa·ble, adjective

Definition for tip (4 of 5)

tip ⁴

[ tip ]

/ tɪp /

noun

a light, smart blow; tap.

Baseball. a batted ball that glances off the bat. Compare foul tip.

verb (used with object), tipped, tip·ping.

to strike or hit with a light, smart blow; tap.

Baseball. to strike (the ball) with a glancing blow.

Origin of tip

⁴

1425–75; late Middle English (noun); perhaps < Low German; compare German tippen to tap < Low German

Definition for tip (5 of 5)

O'Neill

[ oh-neel ]

/ oʊˈnil /

noun

Eugene (Gladstone),1888–1953, U.S. playwright: Nobel prize 1936.

Thomas P(hilip)Tip,1912–1994, U.S. politician: congressman 1953–87; speaker of the House 1977–87.

Example sentences from the Web for tip

Earlier this year, security at major airports was tightened because of a tip that al-Asiri had been working on a cell phone bomb.

A Gift to the Jihadis: The Unseen Airport Security Threat |Clive Irving |December 27, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Tip: The narrower upper deck in coach is the better choice because its eight-seat rows cannot be extended.

Flying Coach Is the New Hell: How Airlines Engineer You Out of Room |Clive Irving |November 25, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
On one of my last evenings in Beirut, I went to a beach party at the Sporting club, at the tip of the city that juts into the sea.

Beirut Letter: In Lebanon, Fighting ISIS With Culture and Satire |Kim Ghattas |September 22, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The mattress causes the boat to tip forward, and in the ensuing rocking the boat begins to take on water.

Whatever You Do Someone Will Die. A Short Story About Impossible Choices in Iraq |Nathan Bradley Bethea |August 31, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

Our oceans are at a tipping point, which means we still have a chance to tip things back in the right direction—if we act now.

‘Mission Blue’ Warning: The Ocean Is Not Too Big to Fail |Sylvia A. Earle |August 15, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
"Don't say that it is not pretty," added my aunt, brushing the firedog with the tip of her tiny boot.

Monsieur, Madame and Bebe, Complete |Gustave Droz
I wonder how it would be for me to tip Sid off not to do it?

The Eight-Oared Victors |Lester Chadwick
Why, you fool, he's just a little clerk that was useful, and was going to get a tip for his pains.

Hurricane Island |H. B. Marriott Watson
The entire secret of it was to have the patient raise the tip of the tongue to the palate and hold it there while speaking.

Psychotherapy |James J. Walsh
Some were so small that three or four of them would fit on the tip of Daoud's finger.

The Saracen: Land of the Infidel |Robert Shea

British Dictionary definitions for tip (1 of 5)

tip ¹

/ (tɪp) /

noun

the extreme end of something, esp a narrow or pointed end

the top or summit

a small piece forming an extremity or end a metal tip on a cane

verb tips, tipping or tipped (tr)

to adorn or mark the tip of

to cause to form a tip

Derived forms of tip

tipless, adjective

Word Origin for tip

C15: from Old Norse typpa; related to Middle Low German, Middle Dutch tip

British Dictionary definitions for tip (2 of 5)

tip ²

/ (tɪp) /

verb tips, tipping or tipped

to tilt or cause to tilt

(usually foll by over or up) to tilt or cause to tilt, so as to overturn or fall

British to dump (rubbish, etc)

tip one's hat to take off, raise, or touch one's hat in salutation

noun

the act of tipping or the state of being tipped

British a dump for refuse, etc

Derived forms of tip

tippable, adjective

Word Origin for tip

C14: of uncertain origin; related to top 1, topple

British Dictionary definitions for tip (3 of 5)

tip ³

/ (tɪp) /

noun

a payment given for services in excess of the standard charge; gratuity

a helpful hint, warning, or other piece of information

a piece of inside information, esp in betting or investing

verb tips, tipping or tipped

to give a tip to (a person)

Word Origin for tip

C18: perhaps from tip 4

British Dictionary definitions for tip (4 of 5)

tip ⁴

/ (tɪp) /

verb tips, tipping or tipped (tr)

to hit or strike lightly

to hit (a ball) indirectly so that it glances off the bat in cricket

noun

a light blow

a glancing hit in cricket

Word Origin for tip

C13: perhaps from Low German tippen

British Dictionary definitions for tip (5 of 5)

O'Neill

/ (əʊˈniːl) /

noun

Eugene (Gladstone). 1888–1953, US dramatist. His works, which are notable for their emotional power and psychological analysis, include Desire under the Elms (1924), Strange Interlude (1928), Mourning becomes Elektra (1931), Long Day's Journey into Night (1941), and The Iceman Cometh (1946): Nobel prize for literature 1936

Idioms and Phrases with tip

tip

In addition to the idioms beginning with tip

tip off
tip of the iceberg
tip one's hand
tip the balance

also see:

from head (tip) to toe
on the tip of one's tongue

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

tip

noun

verb (used with object), tipped, tip·ping.

Verb Phrases

Origin of tip

OTHER WORDS FROM tip

Words nearby tip

Definition for tip (2 of 5)

verb (used with object), tipped, tip·ping.

verb (used without object), tipped, tip·ping.

noun

Origin of tip

OTHER WORDS FROM tip

Definition for tip (3 of 5)

noun

verb (used with object), tipped, tip·ping.

verb (used without object), tipped, tip·ping.

Verb Phrases

Origin of tip

SYNONYMS FOR tip

OTHER WORDS FROM tip

Definition for tip (4 of 5)

noun

verb (used with object), tipped, tip·ping.

Origin of tip

Definition for tip (5 of 5)

noun

Words related to tip

Example sentences from the Web for tip

British Dictionary definitions for tip (1 of 5)

noun

verb tips, tipping or tipped (tr)

Derived forms of tip

Word Origin for tip

British Dictionary definitions for tip (2 of 5)

verb tips, tipping or tipped

noun

Derived forms of tip

Word Origin for tip

British Dictionary definitions for tip (3 of 5)

noun

verb tips, tipping or tipped

Word Origin for tip

British Dictionary definitions for tip (4 of 5)

verb tips, tipping or tipped (tr)

noun

Word Origin for tip

British Dictionary definitions for tip (5 of 5)

noun

Idioms and Phrases with tip