nipping
Americanadjective
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sharp or biting, as cold.
-
sarcastic; caustic.
adjective
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sharp and biting
a nipping wind
-
sarcastic; bitter
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of nipping
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.
Claude-maker Anthropic has OpenAI, Google's Gemini and even Grok from xAI nipping at its heels in the market for professional AI.
From Barron's • Feb. 22, 2026
"I'm open to evolution and some nipping and tucking, but without being ultimately able to steer the ship maybe there is someone better," he said.
From BBC • Jan. 21, 2026
“The White Lotus” carried six nominations into the ceremony, with streaming hits like “Adolescence” and “Severance” nipping at its heels.
From Salon • Jan. 11, 2026
SEOUL—The startup that is now one of a handful of chip makers nipping at the heels of Nvidia began in a hospital bed in Seoul a decade ago.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 3, 2026
Vonetta and Fern ran to him like nipping puppies.
From "P.S. Be Eleven" by Rita Williams-Garcia
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.
