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• sup
  sup

  interjection

  wassup.
• sup-
  sup-

  variant of sub- before p:
• sup.
  sup.

  abbreviation

  superior.

sup

¹ American  

[suhp] / sʌp /

Or 'sup

interjection

Slang.

1. wassup.

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sup ² American  

[suhp] / sʌp /

verb (used without object)

supped, supping

1. to eat the evening meal; have supper.

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verb (used with object)

supped, supping

1. to provide with or entertain at supper.

sup ³ American  

[suhp] / sʌp /

verb (used with object)

supped, supping

1. to take (liquid food, or any liquid) into the mouth in small quantities, as from a spoon or cup; sip.

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verb (used without object)

supped, supping

1. to take liquid into the mouth in small quantities, as by spoonfuls or sips.

noun

1. a mouthful or small portion of drink or liquid food; sip.

sup ⁴ American  

[soop] / sup /

noun

Mathematics.

1. supremum. See least upper bound.

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sup- ⁵ American  

1. variant of sub- before p:

   suppose.

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sup. ⁶ American  

abbreviation

1. superior.

2. superlative.

3. supine.

4. supplement.

5. supplementary.

6. supply.

7. supra.

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sup ¹ British  

/ sʌp /

verb

1. to partake of (liquid) by swallowing a little at a time

2. dialect to drink

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noun

1. a sip

sup. ² British  

abbreviation

1. above

2. superior

3. grammar superlative

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sup ³ British  

/ sʌp /

verb

1. archaic (intr) to have supper

2. obsolete (tr) to provide with supper

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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

See Examples For:

sup sup- sup. supped supping

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

Yes, it’s able But your meals might be slightly unstable When it comes time to sup Just hold on to your cup While I pump up your new InflaTable.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 18, 2022

How can I best sup port my girlfriend?

From Slate ● Feb. 4, 2021

“May I offer you both some sup and drink that we might be better acquainted?”

From "Chains" by Laurie Halse Anderson

“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

"Yes, Andre," I replied, "as long as the wind continues favorable the raft has decidedly the advantage; but sup- posing the wind shifts; what then?"

From The Survivors of the Chancellor by Jules Verne

I sup- posed that you, being acquainted with the history of your country, felt under a certain obligation to Thomas Paine for the splendid services rendered by him in the darkest days of the Revolution.

From The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 5 (of 12) Dresden Edition?Discussions by Robert Green Ingersoll

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

Occasionally however he endeavoured, following Huxley and others, to defend himself against the reproach of relying upon such a factor.—Vid. sup., c. xii.

From The Old Riddle and the Newest Answer by John S.J. Gerard

Eurip. ubi sup. where ἐπιπορπὶς appears to be the tongue of the clasp.1253.Περόναι, or clasps, were also used in the Ionic female dress, in order to close the slit-up sleeve.

From The History and Antiquities of the Doric Race, Vol. 2 of 2 by Karl Otfried Müller

See Benfey's parallels, ut. sup. pp. 497-98, and Grimm, No. 87, notes.

From Italian Popular Tales by Thomas Frederick Crane

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

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

To the north at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, the campus’ Hillel organization recently welcomed several Ukrainian students to a Shabbat dinner, where they supped on matzo ball soup and deli sandwiches.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 20, 2022

I have drunk the legendary Vietnamese coffee and supped the sulphurous vegetable broth on the collapsing sofas.

From The Verge ● Mar. 31, 2018

A captive she might be, but she was still a Greyjoy of Pyke, and it pleased Stannis Baratheon to feed her scraps from his own table, where he supped with his captains and commanders.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

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

But the women were rewarded with the sight of two bright orange sulfur butterflies and a cluster of Western tiger swallowtail supping on teasel flowers.

From Washington Times ● Jul. 9, 2016

The Friar was unwillinge to believe that I had met a talking Ferret and did ask me whether I had been supping of Brother Boniface’s Turnip Wine.

From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling