squib
Americannoun
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a short and witty or sarcastic saying or writing.
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Journalism. a short news story, often used as a filler.
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a small firework, consisting of a tube or ball filled with powder, that burns with a hissing noise terminated usually by a slight explosion.
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a firecracker broken in the middle so that it burns with a hissing noise but does not explode.
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Australian. a coward.
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an electric, pyrotechnic device for firing the igniter of a rocket engine, especially a solid-propellant engine.
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Obsolete. a mean or paltry fellow.
verb (used without object)
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to write squibs.
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to shoot a squib.
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to explode with a small, sharp sound.
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to move swiftly and irregularly.
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Australian.
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to be afraid.
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to flee; escape.
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verb (used with object)
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to assail in squibs or lampoons.
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to toss, shoot, or utilize as a squib.
noun
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a firework, usually having a tube filled with gunpowder, that burns with a hissing noise and culminates in a small explosion
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a firework that does not explode because of a fault; dud
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a short witty attack; lampoon
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an electric device for firing a rocket engine
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obsolete an insignificant person
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slang a coward
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something intended but failing to impress
verb
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(intr) to sound, move, or explode like a squib
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(intr) to let off or shoot a squib
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to write a squib against (someone)
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(intr) to move in a quick irregular fashion
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slang (intr) to behave in a cowardly fashion
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of squib
First recorded in 1515–25; origin uncertain
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.
Now Frank is out of the Cup following the latest damp squib in the former Brentford manager's wretched first season in charge.
From Barron's • Jan. 10, 2026
But the much-anticipated showdown between two Heisman-candidate quarterbacks and national championship-quality teams had been a damp squib over the first two quarters.
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 28, 2025
Kicking under the new format feels more like “shanking” a kickoff than doing a squib kick, as Dicker put it.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 3, 2024
Plaid Cymru previously called the report a "damp squib".
From BBC • Mar. 17, 2024
It’s only when I hear a squib of Noise not my own that I open my eyes.
From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness
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.
