sip
1 Americanverb (used with object)
-
to drink (a liquid) a little at a time; take small tastes of.
He sipped the hot tea noisily.
-
to drink from a little at a time.
The bird sipped the flower.
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to take in; absorb.
to sip knowledge at its source.
verb (used without object)
noun
-
an instance of sipping; a small taste of a liquid.
One sip told me that the milk was sour.
-
a small quantity taken by sipping.
Take just a sip, not a gulp or a swallow.
verb
noun
-
a small quantity of a liquid taken into the mouth and swallowed
-
an act of sipping
Related Words
See drink.
Other Word Forms
- sipper noun
- sippingly adverb
- unsipped adjective
Etymology
Origin of sip
1350–1400; Middle English sippen (v.), akin to Low German sippen to sip
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.
A street away, at "Chacho's" cafe, customers in sunglasses sip lattes and matcha tea.
From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026
Odor compounds are released as we chew or sip, traveling from the mouth to the nose though the nasal pharynx at the back of throat.
From Science Daily • Feb. 9, 2026
Owners are eager for more, more, more, especially if they have had a sip of it all.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 14, 2026
Each of these resorts has an undersea restaurant, where travelers can sip sparkling wine and eat crab and caviar as Rainbowfish flit by, and Blacktip sharks skulk in the distance.
From Salon • Dec. 27, 2025
The girl pushed back the plastic tab on her coffee lid and took a sip.
From Absolutely Almost by Lisa Graff
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.
