nipping
Americanadjective
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sharp or biting, as cold.
-
sarcastic; caustic.
adjective
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sharp and biting
a nipping wind
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sarcastic; bitter
Other Word 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
“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
It was a superb delivery from Archer, nipping away from round the wicket.
From BBC • Dec. 5, 2025
Rex paid them no attention; he bounded past like they were standing still and quickly closed the gap on Jordan, nipping at his heels and chasing him out of the park and down the block.
From "Eleven" by Tom Rogers
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.
