clip

¹ American  

[klip] / klɪp /

verb (used with object)

clipped, clipped, clipt, clipping

1. to cut, or cut off or out, as with shears.

   to clip a rose from a bush.

2. to trim by cutting.

   to clip a hedge.

3. to cut or trim the hair or fleece of; shear.

   to clip a poodle.

4. to pare the edge of (a coin).

5. to cut short; curtail.

   We clipped our visit by a week to return home earlier.

6. to pronounce rapidly, with precise articulation and with omission of certain sounds, as of unstressed vowels.

   an annoying habit of clipping his words.

7. to shorten (a word or phrase) by dropping one or more syllables.

8. Informal. to hit with a quick, sharp blow.

   He clipped him on the jaw with a sudden punch.

9. Slang. to take or get money from by dishonest means; swindle; rook.

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verb (used without object)

clipped, clipped, clipt, clipping

1. to clip or cut something.

2. to cut articles or pictures from a newspaper, magazine, etc.

3. to move swiftly.

   He clipped along the highway on his motorcycle.

4. Archaic. to fly rapidly.

noun

1. the act of clipping.

2. anything clipped off, especially the wool shorn at a single shearing of sheep.

3. the amount of wool shorn in one season.

4. (used with a plural verb) clips, an instrument for clipping; shears.

5. film clip.

6. Informal. clipping.

7. Informal. a quick, sharp blow.

   a clip on the jaw.

8. rate; pace.

   at a rapid clip.

clip ² American  

[klip] / klɪp /

noun

1. a device that grips and holds tightly.

2. a metal or plastic clasp for holding together papers, letters, etc.

3. cartridge clip.

4. an article of jewelry or other decoration clipped onto clothing, shoes, hats, etc.

5. a flange on the upper surface of a horseshoe.

6. Also called lug. Shipbuilding. a short length of angle iron connecting and maintaining the angle between two members or surfaces.

7. Archaic. an embrace.

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verb (used with or without object)

clipped, clipping

1. to grip tightly; fasten with or as if with a clip.

2. to encircle; encompass.

3. Football. to block by illegally throwing the body across a player's legs from behind.

4. Archaic. to embrace or hug.

clip ¹ British  

/ klɪp /

verb

1. (also intr) to cut, snip, or trim with or as if with scissors or shears, esp in order to shorten or remove a part

2. to punch (a hole) in something, esp a ticket

3. to curtail or cut short

4. to move a short section from (a film, etc)

5. to shorten (a word)

6. (intr) to trot or move rapidly, esp over a long distance

   a horse clipping along the road

7. informal to strike with a sharp, often slanting, blow

8. slang to obtain (money) by deception or cheating

9. slang to murder; execute

10. 1. to restrict someone's freedom

    2. to thwart someone's ambition

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noun

1. the act or process of clipping

2. something clipped off

3. an extract from a film, newspaper, etc

4. informal a sharp, often slanting, blow

5. informal speed

   a rapid clip

6. the total quantity of wool shorn, as in one place, season, etc

7. another word for clipped form

clip ² British  

/ klɪp /

noun

1. any of various small implements used to hold loose articles together or to attach one article to another

2. an article of jewellery that can be clipped onto a dress, hat, etc

3. short for paperclip cartridge clip

4. the pointed flange on a horseshoe that secures it to the front part of the hoof

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verb

1. to hold together tightly, as with a clip

2. archaic to embrace

Other Word Forms

• clippable
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of clip¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English clippen, cleppen, from Old Norse klippa “to clip, cut”

Origin of clip²

First recorded before 900; Middle English clippen, cluppen, cleppen “to embrace, grasp, hold,” Old English clyppan “to embrace, clasp, cherish”; cognate with Old Frisian kleppa

Explanation

Use the noun clip to talk about a fastener that holds things together, like a paper clip or a hair clip. A clip keeps loose things attached to each other, but when you clip something, you cut small pieces off of it. Think of when you clip your dog's toenails or clip the dangling ends off the blanket you're knitting. You can also use the verb clip for a figurative kind of cutting, like when you clip two minutes off your marathon time or clip your words — say them quickly and tensely — when you're angry.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

clip clipped clipping clipt

Schmidt has acknowledged that his words and gesture "were inappropriate and capable of causing offence and hurt", adding that the clip was recorded at a private gathering and "not intended for the public".

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

He sent the clip to his girlfriend and asked her what the family’s favorite songs were.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

The Arizona Court of Appeals agreed, ruling that Horcasitas, 55, must be resentenced because the AI clip "crossed that line".

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

The company projects Black Friday sales will grow at a stronger clip, up 9.2% to $12.9 billion, due in part to having the biggest discounts on categories like TVs, apparel and appliances.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026

That morning Liyana had urged Sylvie to defy the “directress” who ordered her to remove a tortoise-shell clip from her hair.

From "Habibi" by Naomi Shihab Nye

Delta Air Lines Flight 7 was taxiing for departure when its left wing clipped Air Canada Flight 785’s horizontal stabilizer at around 10:30 a.m.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

Putin was listening to Sisi through an interpretation headset clipped to his ear, while his eyes scanned the crowd.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

Woods was involved in a March 27 road accident in Florida in which his vehicle clipped a truck pulling a trailer and flipped on its side while attempting to pass on a residential road.

From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026

There will be 10 athletes in Friday's final instead of nine, with Lithuanian athlete Gabija Galvydyte - who was clipped by Werro as she fell - also advancing alongside the Swiss.

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026

After he has gone through all the forms, he leans forward and addresses Apa in a clear, clipped voice.

From "A Step from Heaven" by An Na

And to do it, they’re clipping some flabbergasting selections from their media libraries and pumping them out into vertical videos.

From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026

Right now, her favorite is the Nopal Cactus candle, which she made using a clipping from an employee’s yard.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

He hit 30 off 20 balls before clipping Foulkes to a tumbling Daryl Mitchell at mid-on so Stokes will spend his final day watching his team-mates from the balcony.

From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026

Talarico recently said some of his past comments “missed the mark,” and he accused Paxton of “intentionally clipping my cringey comments to distract from his career of corruption.”

From Salon ● Jun. 17, 2026

I had to memorize these hormones and what they did and I hadn’t been able to make flash cards because I was too busy clipping newspaper articles.

From "It’s Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini

Thou hast clipt my wings for thy pleasure.

From Tell Me Another Story The Book of Story Programs by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey

And the leddy too, sae genty, There shelter'd Scotland's heir, And clipt a lock wi' her ain hand Frae his lang yellow hair.

From The Modern Scottish Minstrel, Volume I. The Songs of Scotland of the past half century by Charles Rogers

Immediately below, stood the insulated and respectable mansion or Palace of the Bishop; in the midst of a formal garden--begirt with yet more formally clipt hedges.

From A Bibliographical, Antiquarian and Picturesque Tour in France and Germany, Volume One by Thomas Frognall Dibdin

Down vistas long of clipt charmille Watteau as Pierrot leads the reel; Tabor and pipe the dancers guide As I read on.

From The Complete Poetical Works of James Russell Lowell by James Russell Lowell

Thou hast clipt my wings for thy pleasure. 

From A House of Pomegranates by Oscar Wilde

Related Words

• mow
• prune
• shave
• shear
• snip
• trim