lid

American  

[lid] / lɪd /

noun

1. a removable or hinged cover for closing the opening, usually at the top, of a pot, jar, trunk, etc.; a movable cover.

2. an eyelid.

3. a restraint, ceiling, or curb, as on prices or news.

4. Slang. a hat, cap, or other head covering.

5. (in mosses)

   1. the cover of the capsule; operculum.

   2. the upper section of a pyxidium.

6. Slang. one ounce of marijuana.

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verb (used with object)

lidded, lidding

1. to supply or cover with a lid.

idioms

1. blow / flip one's lid, to lose control, especially to rage hysterically: Also flip one's wig.

   He nearly flipped his lid over the way they damaged his car.

2. blow the lid off, to expose to public view, especially to reveal something scandalous, illegal, etc.

lid British  

/ lɪd /

noun

1. a cover, usually removable or hinged, for a receptacle

   a saucepan lid

   a desk lid

2. short for eyelid

3. botany another name for operculum

4. slang short for skidlid

5. old-fashioned a quantity of marijuana, usually an ounce

6. informal to raise one's hat as a greeting, etc

7. slang to become crazy or angry

8. informal

   1. to be the final blow to

   2. to curb, prevent, or discourage

9. informal to make startling or spectacular revelations about

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lid More Idioms  

1. see blow the lid off; flip one's lid; put the lid on.

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Other Word Forms

• lidded adjective
• sublid noun
• underlid noun
• unlidded adjective

Etymology

Origin of lid

before 1000; Middle English; Old English hlid; cognate with Dutch, German lid, Old Norse hlith gate, gateway

Example Sentences

I tried to open my eyes, but my lids were heavy.

From Literature

One type, called Sn or "lid" waves, moves along the top of the mantle in a region known as the lid.

From Science Daily

This tension, he said, was compounded by subsequent U.S. intelligence reports alleging that widespread corruption had rendered some of these missiles nonfunctional—including claims of defective silo lids.

From The Wall Street Journal

The Nasdaq Composite finally snapped its four-session losing streak today, even though AI jitters kept a lid on software stocks.

From Barron's

The ice lid contracts and expands with temperature fluctuations between night and day, opening cracks that fill with shards of newly frozen lake water.

From Barron's

Related Words

• cap
• roof