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Synonyms

sip

1 American  
[sip] / sɪp /

verb (used with object)

sipped, sipping

  1. to drink (a liquid) a little at a time; take small tastes of.

    He sipped the hot tea noisily.

  2. to drink from a little at a time.

    The bird sipped the flower.

  3. to take in; absorb.

    to sip knowledge at its source.

verb (used without object)

sipped, sipping

  1. to drink by sips.

noun

  1. an instance of sipping; a small taste of a liquid.

    One sip told me that the milk was sour.

  2. a small quantity taken by sipping.

    Take just a sip, not a gulp or a swallow.
SIP 2 American  

  1. supplemental income plan.

sip British  
/ sɪp /

verb

  1. to drink (a liquid) by taking small mouthfuls; drink gingerly or delicately

"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

noun

  1. a small quantity of a liquid taken into the mouth and swallowed

  2. an act of sipping

"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

Related Words

See drink.

Other Word Forms

  • sipper noun
  • sippingly adverb
  • unsipped adjective

Etymology

Origin of sip

1350–1400; Middle English sippen (v.), akin to Low German sippen to sip

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.

A street away, at "Chacho's" cafe, customers in sunglasses sip lattes and matcha tea.

From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026

Start with what asks the least of you: a spoonful, a sip, a slice, a bite.

From Salon • Jan. 29, 2026

"Just sip water, that's more than good enough and keep your hard-earned money for other things."

From BBC • Jan. 1, 2026

Elsewhere in the province, Songtsam Lodge Cizhong, where guests can sip housemade Chardonnay, has reopened after a two-year refurbishment, with a sister hotel coming to Kunming next year.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 20, 2025

I let the last sip of hot chocolate sit on my tongue for a little bit before I swallowed it down, and then Mom and I headed home.

From Absolutely Almost by Lisa Graff

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.