sup
interjection
sup
1 American
[suhp]
/ sʌp /
Or
'sup
interjection
Slang.
sup
2
American
[suhp]
/ sʌp /
verb (used without object)
supped,
supping
verb (used with object)
supped,
supping
sup
3
American
[suhp]
/ sʌp /
verb (used with object)
supped,
supping
verb (used without object)
supped,
supping
noun
sup
4
American
[soop]
/ sup /
noun
Mathematics.
sup-
5
American
sup.
6
American
abbreviation
-
superior.
-
superlative.
-
supine.
-
supplement.
-
supplementary.
-
supply.
-
supra.
sup
1
British
/ sʌp /
verb
-
to partake of (liquid) by swallowing a little at a time
-
dialect to drink
noun
sup.
2
British
abbreviation
-
above
-
superior
-
grammar superlative
sup
3
British
/ sʌp /
verb
-
archaic (intr) to have supper
-
obsolete (tr) to provide with supper
Etymology
Origin of sup1
First recorded in 1985–90; by shortening
Origin of sup2
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English s(o)upen, soupe, from Old French souper “to take supper,” from Germanic; compare Old English sūpan “to swallow, taste, sip”; see sup 3
Origin of sup3
First recorded before 900; Middle English s(o)uppen, soup(p)e, Old English sūpan; cognate with German saufen “to drink”; cf. sip, sop, soup, sup 2
Origin of sup4
First recorded in 1940–45; by shortening
Explanation
To sup is to eat slowly, by spoonfuls. When you eat soup, you probably sup it. You can really only sup soft foods and liquids, like oatmeal and milkshakes and miso soup. A sick person taking gingerly spoons of Jello into his mouth can be said to sup, and so can a hesitant baby eating tiny bites of pureed carrots. Sup essentially means "sip," and its root is the Old English sūpan, "to sip or swallow."
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.
See Examples For:
Now, there is only three years to go until the pub rises again and thirsty regulars can sup a beer — or two.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 27, 2024
The door has been left ajar, funnelling an icy breeze into the bar where a small group of members sup pints.
From BBC ● Dec. 10, 2023
How can I best sup port my girlfriend?
From Slate ● Feb. 4, 2021
After a screening of the season’s first episode, guests repaired to the nearby Lobster Club to sup on buffets of sushi and pasta.
From New York Times ● Feb. 5, 2020
"Her page. She invites you to sup with her again. There's to be a haunch of venison, she says, a brace of stuffed geese sauced with mulberries, and—" "—her daughter," Tyrion finished sourly.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
“And what college is sup- posed to do is to allow you to live more fully in your time.”
From MSNBC ● Mar. 21, 2015
In Barn Dance, farm wives of 1850 prepare a picnic sup- per, children play and bicker, bashful hayseeds choose partners.
From Time Magazine Archive
A passage of double aisles surrounds it, with the arches that divide them sup- ported on very thick round columns, not clustered.
From A Little Tour in France by Henry James
It was not till the third day that I re- turned to Tours; and the distance, traversed for the most part after dark, was even greater than I had sup- posed.
From A Little Tour in France by Henry James
No one sup- posed that the process would be so sudden and violent.
From New Forces in Old China An Inevitable Awakening by Arthur Judson Brown
For the Wertherism, v. sup. on Chateaubriand, p.
From A History of the French Novel, Vol. 2 To the Close of the 19th Century by George Saintsbury
P. 4-9 cm. exp. rivulose, rugulose, tawny, edge pale; g. adnate, pallid then fuscous; s. 8-14 cm. equal, silky-white, ring sup. tumid; sp.
From European Fungus Flora: Agaricaceae by George Massee
How the man of war identifies himself with the remnant of those that shall sup. 2nd Troop.
From Cromwell by Alfred B. Richards
Apollon. et Pind. ubi sup.; according to other authors, referred to by Steph.
From The History and Antiquities of the Doric Race, Vol. 1 of 2 by Karl Otfried Müller
P. 7-10 cm. soon plane, orange or golden, viscid, naked; g. free; s. 8-12 cm. slender, white, floccosely-squamulose, ring sup. volva marginate; sp. ——. citrina, Gon.
From European Fungus Flora: Agaricaceae by George Massee
Mr McCann added that he and his wife had "supped with the Devil" by working with the Sun in 2011, in order to have the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance reviewed - illustrating the newspaper's influence.
From BBC ● Dec. 10, 2025
Some of the riffs, I think, “Hmm, maybe we supped at the same table.”
From New York Times ● Sep. 19, 2022
Early arrivals supped on chilled golden beet soup before an entree of king oyster mushroom “scallops” with mushroom risotto, brussels sprouts and carrots.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 5, 2020
I have drunk the legendary Vietnamese coffee and supped the sulphurous vegetable broth on the collapsing sofas.
From The Verge ● Mar. 31, 2018
This was the first time they had supped with the men since arriving in King's Landing.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
In overnight towns, we made a habit of supping at churches, which offered hospitality and dinners of pasta, lasagna, chicken.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
The 12-seat, low-ceiling private dining room beckons with botanical wallpaper and wood rafters that let you pretend you’re supping al fresco.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 21, 2022
This was the modern-day equivalent of supping from Mr Bannon’s gilded skull.
From Economist ● Jan. 11, 2018
“What I didn’t realize is that supping with them would actually have a broader impact on how the world sees me as a scientist,” he said.
From New York Times ● Dec. 31, 2016
Ser Jacelyn Bywater delivered the butcher's bill as he was supping on a cold capon and brown bread in the gloom of his solar.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
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.
