snipe
Americannoun
plural
snipes,plural
snipe-
Also snite any of several long-billed game birds of the genera Gallinago (sometimesCapella ) and Limnocryptes, inhabiting marshy areas, as G. gallinago common snipe, orwhole snipe, of Eurasia and North America, having barred and striped white, brown, and black plumage.
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any of several other long-billed birds, as some sandpipers.
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a shot, usually from a hidden position.
verb (used without object)
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to shoot or hunt snipe.
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to shoot at individuals as opportunity offers from a concealed or distant position.
The enemy was sniping from the roofs.
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to attack a person or a person's work with petulant or snide criticism, especially anonymously or from a safe distance.
noun
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any of various birds of the genus Gallinago (or Capella ) and related genera, such as G. gallinago ( common or Wilson's snipe ), of marshes and river banks, having a long straight bill: family Scolopacidae (sandpipers, etc), order Charadriiformes
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any of various similar related birds, such as certain sandpipers and curlews
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a shot, esp a gunshot, fired from a place of concealment
verb
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to attack (a person or persons) with a rifle from a place of concealment
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to criticize adversely a person or persons from a position of security
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(intr) to hunt or shoot snipe
Other Word Forms
- countersniper noun
- snipelike adjective
- sniper noun
Etymology
Origin of snipe
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English snype (noun), from Old Norse -snīpa (in mȳrisnīpa “moor snipe”); cognate with Norwegian snipa, Icelandic snīpa; compare Danish sneppe, German Schnepfe
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.
Despite the stress of delivering the “Arirang” on time, the men never bicker or snipe at each other.
From Salon • Mar. 27, 2026
Vance’s snipe at “cat ladies” wasn’t Swift’s introduction to right-wing weirdness.
From Slate • Aug. 6, 2025
Some of his supporters even snipe at rival Mr Katumbi.
From BBC • Dec. 15, 2023
Birds that will be renamed include those currently called Wilson’s warbler and Wilson’s snipe, both named after the 19th century naturalist Alexander Wilson.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 1, 2023
“Do you want to find the aqueducts,” Alyssa interjects, “or just snipe at each other until they put us on a death bus to nowhere?”
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
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.
