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Showing results for nipping. Search instead for nippingly.
Synonyms

nipping

American  
[nip-ing] / ˈnɪp ɪŋ /

adjective

  1. sharp or biting, as cold.

  2. sarcastic; caustic.

nipping British  
/ ˈnɪpɪŋ /

adjective

  1. sharp and biting

    a nipping wind

  2. sarcastic; bitter

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • nippingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of nipping

First recorded in 1540–50; nip 1 + -ing 2

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.

"Probably on reflection I could have used swing more to set up the wobble seam, which might have just gone straight on rather than nipping," Potts says.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

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

“For all the success we had this year, we are still nipping at the heels of giants who earned their positions over the last 50 years,” said Hogan.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 19, 2025

They keep me moving, a charm to ward off the fear nipping at my mind.

From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir

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.