dip
verb (used with object)
to plunge (something, as a cloth or sponge) temporarily into a liquid, so as to moisten it, dye it, or cause it to take up some of the liquid.
dip
1 American
[dip]
/ dɪp /
verb (used with object)
-
dips,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dipped,
past participle, past
-
dipt,
past participle, past (Archaic)
-
dipping
present participle
-
to plunge (something, as a cloth or sponge) temporarily into a liquid, so as to moisten it, dye it, or cause it to take up some of the liquid.
He dipped the brush into the paint bucket.
- Synonyms:
- duck
-
to raise or take up by a bailing, scooping, or ladling action.
to dip water out of a boat; to dip ice cream from a container.
- Synonyms:
- scoop
-
to lower and raise.
to dip a flag in salutation.
-
to immerse (a sheep, hog, etc.) in a solution to destroy germs, parasites, or the like.
-
to make (a candle) by repeatedly plunging a wick into melted tallow or wax.
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Nautical. to lower and rehoist (a yard of a lugsail) when coming about in tacking.
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Archaic. to baptize by immersion.
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Obsolete. to moisten or wet as if by immersion.
verb (used without object)
-
dips,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dipped,
past participle, past
-
dipt,
past participle, past (Archaic)
-
dipping
present participle
-
to plunge into water or other liquid and emerge quickly.
The boat dipped into the waves.
- Synonyms:
- dive
-
to put the hand, a dipper, etc., down into a liquid or a container, especially in order to remove something (often followed by in orinto ).
He dipped into the jar for an olive.
-
to withdraw something, especially in small amounts (usually followed by in orinto ).
to dip into savings.
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to sink or drop down.
The sun dipped below the horizon.
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to incline or slope downward.
At that point the road dips into a valley.
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to decrease slightly or temporarily.
Stock-market prices often dip on Fridays.
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to engage slightly in a subject (often followed by in orinto ).
to dip into astronomy.
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to read here and there in a book, subject, or author's work (often followed by in orinto ).
to dip into Plato.
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South Midland and Southern U.S. to take snuff.
noun
-
the act of dipping.
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that which is taken up by dipping.
-
a quantity taken up by dipping; the amount that a scoop, ladle, dipper, etc., will hold.
-
a scoop of ice cream.
-
Chiefly Northern U.S. a liquid or soft substance into which something is dipped.
-
a creamy mixture of savory foods for scooping with potato chips, crackers, and the like, often served as an hors d'oeuvre, especially with cocktails.
-
a momentary lowering; a sinking down.
-
a moderate or temporary decrease.
a dip in stock-market prices.
-
a downward extension, inclination, slope, or course.
-
the amount of such extension.
-
a hollow or depression in the land.
-
a brief swim.
She took a dip in the ocean and then sat on the beach for an hour.
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Geology, Mining. the downward inclination of a vein or stratum with reference to the horizontal.
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the angular amount by which the horizon lies below the level of the eye.
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Also called magnetic inclination. Also called magnetic dip;. Also called inclination. Also called angle of dip,. the angle that a freely rotating magnetic needle makes with the plane of the horizon.
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a short, downward plunge, as of an airplane.
-
a candle made by repeatedly dipping a wick into melted tallow or wax.
-
Gymnastics. an exercise on the parallel bars in which the elbows are bent until the chin is on a level with the bars, and then the body is elevated by straightening the arms.
-
Slang. a pickpocket.
idioms
dip
2
American
[dip]
/ dɪp /
noun
Slang.
dip
3
American
[dip]
/ dɪp /
noun
Slang.
DIP
4
American
[dip]
/ dɪp /
noun
Computers.
dip
1
British
/ dɪp /
verb
-
to plunge or be plunged quickly or briefly into a liquid, esp to wet or coat
-
(intr) to undergo a slight decline, esp temporarily
sales dipped in November
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(intr) to slope downwards
the land dips towards the river
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(intr) to sink or appear to sink quickly
the sun dipped below the horizon
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US and Canadian word: dim. (tr) to switch (car headlights) from the main to the lower beam
-
(tr)
-
to immerse (poultry, sheep, etc) briefly in a liquid chemical to rid them of or prevent infestation by insects, etc
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to immerse (grain, vegetables, or wood) in a preservative liquid
-
-
(tr) to stain or dye by immersing in a liquid
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(tr) to baptize (someone) by immersion
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(tr) to plate or galvanize (a metal, etc) by immersion in an electrolyte or electrolytic cell
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(tr) to scoop up a liquid or something from a liquid in the hands or in a container
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to lower or be lowered briefly
she dipped her knee in a curtsy
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(tr) to make (a candle) by plunging the wick into melted wax
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(intr) to plunge a container, the hands, etc, into something, esp to obtain or retrieve an object
he dipped in his pocket for money
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(intr; foll by in or into) to dabble (in); play (at)
he dipped into black magic
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(intr) (of an aircraft) to drop suddenly and then regain height
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(intr) (of a rock stratum or mineral vein) to slope downwards from the horizontal
-
(in children's games) to select (a leader, etc) by reciting any of various rhymes
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slang (tr) to pick (a person's) pocket
noun
-
the act of dipping or state of being dipped
-
a brief swim in water
-
-
any liquid chemical preparation in which poultry, sheep, etc are dipped
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any liquid preservative into which objects, esp of wood, are dipped
-
-
a preparation of dyeing agents into which fabric is immersed
-
a depression, esp in a landscape
-
something taken up by dipping
-
a container used for dipping; dipper
-
a momentary sinking down
-
the angle of slope of rock strata, fault planes, etc, from the horizontal plane
-
Also called: angle of dip. magnetic dip. inclination. the angle between the direction of the earth's magnetic field and the plane of the horizon; the angle that a magnetic needle free to swing in a vertical plane makes with the horizontal
-
a creamy mixture into which pieces of food are dipped before being eaten
-
surveying the angular distance of the horizon below the plane of observation
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a candle made by plunging a wick repeatedly into wax
-
a momentary loss of altitude when flying
-
(in gymnastics) a chinning exercise on the parallel bars
-
a slang word for pickpocket
dip.
2
British
abbreviation
dip
Scientific
/ dĭp /
-
The downward inclination of a rock stratum or vein in reference to the plane of the horizon.
Usage
What is a basic definition of dip? Dip means to plunge something quickly in a liquid or to sink or go downward. A dip is a creamy mixture that chips or other foods are scooped into. Dip has many other senses as a verb and a noun. When something is dipped into a liquid, it is usually only submerged for a short time to soak up some liquid.
- Real-life examples: Candy or scoops of ice cream may be dipped in chocolate or caramel. A paint brush is dipped in paint. A thermometer might be dipped in a pool to measure temperature.
- Used in a sentence: I dipped my foot in the pool to see how cold it was.
- Real-life examples: Temperatures dip when it becomes cold. Prices tend to dip during the holidays. A company’s stock value may dip.
- Used in a sentence: Oil prices dipped after the announcement of a new line of electric cars.
- Used in a sentence: I know how to make a pretty good spinach dip.
Synonym Usage
Dip, immerse, plunge refer to putting something into liquid. To dip is to put down into a liquid quickly or partially and lift out again: to dip a finger into water to test the temperature. Immerse denotes a lowering into a liquid until covered by it: to immerse meat in salt water. Plunge adds a suggestion of force or suddenness to the action of dipping: to plunge a chicken into boiling water before stripping off the feathers.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
dipsimple
-
dipssimple
-
have dippedperfect
-
have diptperfect
-
has dippedperfect
-
has diptperfect
-
am dippingprogressive
-
are dippingprogressive
-
is dippingprogressive
-
have been dippingperfect progressive
-
has been dippingperfect progressive
Past
-
dippedsimple
-
diptsimple
-
had dippedperfect
-
had diptperfect
-
was dippingprogressive
-
were dippingprogressive
-
had been dippingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dip1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English verb dippen, duppen “to dip, moisten, plunge,” Old English dyppan “to baptize”; akin to German taufen “to baptize,” and to deep
Origin of dip2
First recorded in 1910–15; by shortening
Origin of dip3
First recorded in 1925–30; probably back formation from dippy
Origin of DIP4
d(ual) i(n-line) p(ackage)
Explanation
When you dip something, you plunge it quickly into a liquid or soft substance. You might dip your toe into a swimming pool to check the water temperature. When you finger paint, you dip a fingertip into a puddle of paint, and when you eat a snack you might dip tortilla chips into salsa. You can also say that a boat bobbing on the ocean dips, or that a bird dropping lower in the sky dips down. A dip can be a quick swim, a delicious sauce meant for dunking other foods in, or a downward slope. The Old English root, dyppan, means "immerse" or "baptize."
Vocabulary lists containing dip
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"I will now dip into my savings, borrow some money. I don't know what's next," she told AFP in the garment hub of Gazipur.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
With sewage spills and bathing water quality often in the headlines, more people are asking how clean the water is before taking a dip.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
Take a breath: Get ready to buy the dip in tech stocks.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
In a social-media post after Kimi K3’s release caused a dip in U.S. stocks, Moonshot AI President Zhang Yutong wrote that the company’s annual recurring revenue spiked to a record high.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
And she bakes bread—real bread to dip into it.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
Sir Keir said the DIP would be built on by his successor, who is widely expected to be Makerfield MP Andy Burnham.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
The Times continues with the DIP fallout, saying "Burnham's first job will be to find £7bn of cuts."
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
So a clearer way to discuss the size of the DIP funding shortfall is around £1.2bn a year.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
That 2.7% figure suggests an increase on the original DIP of around 0.02% of GDP, which the government has found since Healey resigned - that's equivalent in today's money to £600m extra in 2030.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
Unfortunately, even the PCI bus is not up to pulling this off reliably, and people who have to do installation or troubleshoot PCs soon find themselves longing for the DIP switches.
From The Jargon File, Version 4.2.2, 20 Aug 2000 by Steele, Guy L.
“There’s not an organization — maybe outside — that didn’t go through a change, a downfall, a dip. But the cream will rise to the top. To me, it’s not a matter of ‘if.’
From Washington Times ● Nov. 2, 2023
“We’ve taken a dip. Now it’s time to get it back,” coach Jared Bednar said.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 26, 2022
“The things that are happening now are bad, but there’s cycles. … There are dips, and we’re in a dip. But we are constantly, I think, going in an upward trajectory.”
From Washington Post ● Oct. 2, 2018
This includes the tortilla chips that come with salsa and a chipotle bean dip. and the handmade corn tortillas that accompany the chile verde, rice and beans.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 25, 2017
“Your stepfather is just worried about money. That’s all. Besides,” she added, “Gabriel won’t have to setde for bean dip. I’ll make him enough seven-layer dip for the whole weekend. Guacamole. Sour cream. The works.”
From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan
Where the researchers expected to see a smooth spectrum produced by light reflecting from dust, they instead found a pattern of peaks and dips.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026
"Gamers are willing to trade a little fidelity for convenience, but not to pay premium prices for something they don't own which stutters when the Wi-Fi dips," he said.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
It rolled out a new range of products, called Taylor Farms Zero, using olive and avocado oil in its dressings and dips instead of seed oils.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
Crackers have spent enough time under cheese, beside soup, tucked politely next to salads and dips.
From Salon ● Jul. 14, 2026
A fierce wind flushed against Magdalys’s face as she guided her dactyl in reckless dips through the purple-and-orange clouds.
From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older
Job openings dipped in June to a three-month low of 7.4 million, the government said Tuesday.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
SpaceX shares dipped below their IPO price of $135 on Wednesday morning for the first time since listing, signaling dwindling hype around the Elon Musk company.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
Tomato already knows butter from ghee-rich curries, grilled cheese dipped in tomato soup and Marcella Hazan’s famously spare sauce.
From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026
ExxonMobil shares fell 1.5 percent in pre-market trading while Chevron dipped 0.3 percent.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
She dipped her calabash over the side and noticed that the water didn’t look quite the same.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
For I dipt into the future, far as human eye could see .
From Time Magazine Archive
Disregarding the roses and raptures of vice, she paints, with a small brush dipt in gilt, the lilies and languors of virtue.
From Time Magazine Archive
These Sweats may be rendered full more effectual, by wrapping up the affected Part in a Flanel dipt in the Decoction Nº.
From Advice to the people in general, with regard to their health by Tissot, S. A. D. (Samuel Auguste David)
As for outward Applications, Linnen-Rags dipt in the Spirit of Wine impregnated with Camphire and Saffron, are to be laid upon the Tumour, and renew'd as fast as they are dry'd.
From The Compleat Surgeon or, the whole Art of Surgery explain'd in a most familiar Method. by Le Clerc, Charles Gabriel
Suddenly she heard a slight rustle, as though some passing bird's wing had dipt the air.
From Legends of Vancouver by Johnson, E. Pauline
With temperatures dipping around Madrid, "there is a real opportunity now to tackle this fire with some guarantee of success," the central government's delegate in the Spanish capital, Francisco Martin, told reporters late Friday.
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
If you had an unusually low-income year and can carefully manage your taxable income, or can spread withdrawals over several years instead of taking a single large distribution, dipping into your traditional IRA makes sense.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
Nitrocellulose was invented in the mid-19th century, when Swiss chemist Christian Friedrich Schönbein accidentally discovered that cotton became violently flammable after dipping in an acid mix.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
“There will be a lot of straws dipping into the pool,” Carstens said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Aunt Kitty and I did our fair share of gracious dipping and bowing and bobbing, then we tromped off toward the table.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
