nip
1[nip]
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verb (used with object), nipped, nip·ping.
verb (used without object), nipped, nip·ping.
Chiefly British Slang. to leave stealthily; sneak away; flee (often followed by away).
noun
Origin of nip
11350–1400; Middle English nyppe to pinch < Old Norse hnippa to poke, thrust
Synonyms for nip
nip
2[nip]
noun
verb (used with or without object), nipped, nip·ping.
Origin of nip
21690–1700; < Dutch nippen to sip; in def. 2, short for earlier nipperkin vessel holding half-pint or less
Nip
[nip]
noun, adjective Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive.
Origin of Nip
First recorded in 1942; short for Nipponese
Usage note
This term, patterned on the earlier term Jap , was first used in English shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Related Words for nips
snap, nibble, sip, shot, pinch, bite, drop, jolt, dram, portion, finger, catch, mouthful, slug, morsel, snifter, grip, twitch, clip, twingeExamples from the Web for nips
Contemporary Examples of nips
Historical Examples of nips
There was a playfulness about her nips and a gentleness that prevented them from really hurting him.
White FangJack London
She is a very cross hen, and she nips my fingers when I feed her.
It gets under my bearskin; it nips my ears and numbs my hands.
The Silent ReadersWilliam D. Lewis
She nips into the boat and under the stern-sheets in a brace o' shakes.
A Sub and a SubmarinePercy F. Westerman
He nips with his cold fingers the insects that do our plants harm.
Keep-Well Stories for Little FolksMay Farinholt-Jones
Nip
noun
Word Origin for Nip
C20: short for Nipponese
nip
1verb nips, nipping or nipped (mainly tr)
noun
Word Origin for nip
C14: of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse hnippa to prod
nip
2noun
verb nips, nipping or nipped
Word Origin for nip
C18: shortened from nipperkin a vessel holding a half-pint or less, of uncertain origin; compare Dutch nippen to sip
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
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper