Word.ws English Dictionary

tip

UK/tɪp/

tip noun: the extreme end of something, especially when pointed; e.g. the sharp end of a pencil.

Noun (1)

tip (plural tips)

  1. The extreme end of something, especially when pointed; e.g. the sharp end of a pencil.
    • the tip of one's nose
    • When he woke up, about half an hour after, he called it to him again, but Dash only looked sheepish and wagged the tip of his tail.1848, Anne Bronte, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall
  2. A piece of metal, fabric or other material used to cover the top of something for protection, utility or decoration.
    • a tip for an umbrella, a shoe, a gas burner, etc.
  3. The end of a bow of a stringed instrument that is not held.
  4. (in plural) A small piece of meat.
    • chicken tips over rice, pork tips, marinated alligator tips
    • He dutifully speared a beef tip and chewed it with false gusto.1998, Alan Morris, “Between Earth and Sky”, in Guardians of the North, book 4; →ISBN
  5. A piece of stiffened lining pasted on the inside of a hat crown.
  6. A thin, boarded brush made of camel's hair, used by gilders in lifting gold leaf.
  7. Synonym of eartip (“part of earbuds”).
    Synonyms:
    eartip
  8. (slang) The glans penis.
    • my tip sticky rn
    • What's your tip color?

Verb (1)

tip (third-person singular simple present tips, present participle tipping, simple past and past participle tipped)

  1. (transitive) To provide with a tip; to cover the tip of.
    • I thinke he thinkes vpon the sauage bull: / Tush, feare not man, wee'll tip thy hornes with gold, / And all Europa shall reioyce at thee [...].1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
    • truncheon tipped with iron head1662 (indicated as 1663), [Samuel Butler], “[The First Part of Hudibras]. Canto I.”, in Hudibras. The First and Second Parts. […], London: […] John Martyn and Henry Herringman, […], published 1678...

Verb (2)

tip (third-person singular simple present tips, present participle tipping, simple past and past participle tipped)

  1. (ergative) (To cause) to become knocked over, fall down or overturn.
  2. (ergative) (To cause) to be, or come to be, in a tilted or sloping position; (to cause) to become unbalanced.
    • the brief suspended agony of the boat, as it would tip for an instant on the knife-like edge of the sharper waves, that almost seemed threatening to cut it in two […]1851 November 14, Herman Melville, Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC
    • There is little chance that the EU’s watchdogs have, until now, simply missed the evidence of a deeper malaise. The red flags signalling a democratic deficit have always been prominent: from the long-standing harassment, detention, and assassination of peaceful human rights defenders like Chea...2019, Sabrina Lawreniuk, “‘Hun Sen Won’t Die, Workers Will Die’: The Geopolitics of Labour in the Cambodian Crackdown”, in Dog Days: Made in China Yearbook 2018, ANU Press, page 217b
  3. To cause the contents of a container to be emptied out by tilting it.
    • The workshop with its smithy is still intact, also the loading stage where the narrow-gauge wagons tipped their contents into those of the G.W.R.1941 June, “Notes and News: The Derelict Glyn Valley Tramway”, in Railway Magazine, page 278
  4. (dated, slang, transitive) To drink.
  5. (transitive) To dump (refuse).
  6. (US, transitive) To pour a libation or a liquid from a container, particularly from a forty of malt liquor.
    • I tip my 40 to your memory.1993, DRS, Gangsta Lean (This Is For My Homies)
  7. (transitive) To deflect with one′s fingers, especially one′s fingertips.
    • Lampard was replaced by Kalou but the substitute immediately gave the ball to Jonas, whose 25-yard curler was tipped wide by Cech.2011 September 28, Jon Smith, “Valencia 1 - 1 Chelsea”, in BBC Sport

Noun (2)

tip (plural tips)

  1. (obsolete) The knocking over of a skittle.
  2. An act of tipping up or tilting.
  3. (Commonwealth, Ireland, UK) An area or a place for dumping something, such as rubbish or refuse, as from a mine; a heap (see tipple); a dump.
    • There is much sad evidence, too, of the spoliation and dereliction of vanished industry: tips, slag-heaps and derelict colliery-screens among which the ubiquitous, nomad mountain sheep graze unconcernedly.1955 July, D. S. Barrie, “Railways of the Bridgend District”, in Railway Magazine, page 449
    • As the tip slowly squashes under its own weight, bacteria rot away the organic matter, mainly anaerobically with the generation of methane.1972 May 18, Jon Tinker, Must we waste rubbish?, New Scientist, page 389
  4. (Commonwealth, Ireland, UK) Rubbish thrown from a quarry.
  5. (Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, broadly) A recycling centre.
  6. (colloquial) A very untidy place.
  7. The act of deflecting with one's fingers, especially the fingertips
    • As a frenetic opening continued, Cahill - whose robust approach had already prompted Jamie Carragher to register his displeasure to Atkinson - rose above the Liverpool defence to force keeper Pepe Reina into an athletic tip over the top.2011 October 1, Phil McNulty, “Everton 0 - 2 Liverpool”, in BBC Sport
  8. A tram for expeditiously transferring coal.

Verb (3)

tip (third-person singular simple present tips, present participle tipping, simple past and past participle tipped)

  1. (archaic) To hit quickly and lightly; to tap.
    • A third rogue tips me by the elbow.1708, Squire Bickerstaff Detected, John Partridge

Noun (3)

tip (plural tips)

  1. (archaic) A light blow or tap.

Verb (4)

tip (third-person singular simple present tips, present participle tipping, simple past and past participle tipped)

  1. To give a small gratuity to, especially to an employee of someone who provides a service.
    • You should always tip your waiter in the United States and most third world countries.
    • Hire of bedding, and food in the restaurant cars is cheap, and passengers are officially encouraged not to tip company's servants—but they do.1950 April, Timothy H. Cobb, “The Kenya-Uganda Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 263
  2. (thieves' cant) To give, pass.
    • "Done say I to that, Reuben, tip me your fin, my spark, and it shall be a bet."1839, Dearden's Miscellany, volumes 1-2, page 661

Noun (4)

tip (plural tips)

  1. A gratuity; a small amount of money left for a bartender, waiter, taxi driver or other service worker as a token of appreciation, often calculated as a percentage of the bill.
    • Workers in the American service industry usually depend on tips to even make minimum wage.
    • “Did you tip him enough to do any good? They only work for tips.”
      “I didn’t know that,” I said. “I thought the hotel paid them something on the side.”
      “I mean they will only do something for you for a substantial tip. Most of them are rotten clean through.”1964, Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast, page 156
  2. (dated) A gratuity given to someone who voluntarily provides assistance.
    • A half crown tip put the deputy's knowledge at my disposal, and I learned that Mr. Bloxam [...] had left for his work at five o'clock that morning.1897, Bram Stoker, Dracula, Westminster [London]: Archibald Constable and Company, […], →OCLC
    • So Lord Tottenham said, "Well, I'm much obliged any way. And now I come to look at you—of course, you're not young ruffians, but gentlemen's sons, eh? Still, you won't be above taking a tip from an old boy—I wasn't when I was your age," and he pulled out half a sovereign.1899, E. Nesbit, The Story of the Treasure Seekers
  3. (dated) A small monetary gift given to a child from an older relative or family friend.
    • “I hope,” said Uncle Andrew presently in a very high and mighty voice, just as if he were a perfect Uncle who had just given one a handsome tip and some good advice1955, C. S. Lewis, The Magician’s Nephew

Noun (5)

tip (plural tips)

  1. A piece of private or secret information, especially imparted by someone with expert knowledge about sporting odds, business performance etc.
    • hot stock tips
  2. A piece of advice.
    • tips and tricks
  3. (Australia) A prediction of the winning team in a football game by a participant in a footy tipping competition.
    • Thus, this is a tricky tip; Port’s inconsistency combined with the higher ladder placing of Adelaide have me leaning the latter’s way.2019 July 4, Stirling Coates, “The Roar's AFL expert tips and predictions: Round 16”, in The Roar
    • Another bye round, another dose of Thursday night footy and that means you have to get your tips in early.2016 June 29, “AFL tipping 2016: round 15 Expert tips from Herald Sun”, in Herald Sun
  4. (Australia) A prediction about the outcome of something.
    • My guess, Senator Bernardi, is that Mr Rudd will take over. He will immediately say: 'I made a mistake on the carbon tax. We're not going to introduce it and we will go to an election.' There is my tip.2012 June 27, Ian Macdonald, “Tax Laws Amendment (2012 Measures No. 2) Bill 2012, Pay As You Go Withholding Non-compliance Tax Bill 2012”, in parliamentary debates (Australian House of...
    • My tip is he can be top 50 after the Australian summer of tennis.2022 July 18, Jedd Zetzer, “Jason Kubler reaches new heights in Newport”, in SEN
  5. A piece of information transmitted to law enforcement about a crime or other activity of interest.

Verb (5)

tip (third-person singular simple present tips, present participle tipping, simple past and past participle tipped)

  1. To give a piece of private information to; to inform (someone) of a clue, secret knowledge, etc.
    • Dirks was an investment analyst who learned from a former employee of Equity Funding that the company had been fraudulently manufacturing insurance policies. Dirks tipped several institutions which then liquidated $16 million in Equity Funding stock before the fraud was exposed and the bottom fell...1987 October 1, Charles W. Murdock, “Heard It Through the Grapevine: The Future of Insider-Trading Laws”, in ABA Journal, volume 73, number 12, pages 104 of 100–108
    • In rare instances, the provision logically could apply to the private right of action given to contemporaneous traders to recover for insider trading (e.g., a case where an insider tipped an associate about some forthcoming corporate event, and the tippee was found liable based on recklessness).1996, Donald C. Langevoort, “The Reform of Joint and Several Liability Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Proportionate Liability, Contribution Rights and Settlement...
  2. (Australia) To enter a prediction of the winning team of a football game, as part of a footy tipping competition.
    • The rest of Saturday’s games have tantalising opportunities for upsets – but I’m going to tip conservatively.2022 May 5, Tim Miller, “The Roar's AFL expert tips and predictions: Round 8”, in The Roar
    • I tipped all the home teams except for the Sharks and Storm.2010 April 23, Spiral, “Stampede Tipping Comp 2010!”, in Cowboys Stampede
  3. (Australia) To predict something having a particular outcome.
    • I'm tipping that, although complex accounting treatments tend to separate capital items and recurrent programs and impede overall visibility, there are significant overspends across the infrastructure portfolio.2019 April 27, John Pesutto, “Austere pay rises would conflict with case for a 'living wage'”, in The Age
    • Liz Truss is widely tipped to defeat rival Rishi Sunak to become the new British prime minister.2022 September 4, Dominic McGrath, “Truss tipped to win UK leadership race”, in The Canberra Times

Noun (6)

tip (plural tips)

  1. (African-American Vernacular) A kick or phase; one's current habits or behaviour.
  2. (African-American Vernacular) A particular arena or sphere of interest; a front.

Proper noun (1) capitalized: TIP

TIP

  1. (abbreviation, initialism, Unicode) Initialism of Tertiary Ideographic Plane, the fourth 65,536-codepoint plane in Unicode (from U+30000 through U+3FFFF).
  2. (abbreviation) Abbreviation of Tipperary.
  3. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of Third Intermediate Period.
    • […] is based on a far too general assessment of the social position of TIP and Late Period priesthood. Further, it overlooks the actual historical context in which the trend of archaism emerged.2015 November 2, László Török, The Kingdom of Kush: Handbook of the Napatan-Meroitic Civilization, BRILL, →ISBN, page 191
  4. (Philippines, abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of Technological Institute of the Philippines.
  5. (UK, abbreviation, historical, initialism) Initialism of Thurrock Independents Party.

Noun (7) capitalized: TIP

TIP (plural TIPs)

  1. (abbreviation, derogatory, initialism, offensive) Initialism of trans-identified person.

Proper noun (2) capitalized: Tip

Tip

  1. A male nickname.

tip meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Urdu and Bengali

tip in Hindi

extreme end of something
नोक nok
small amount of money left for a servant as a token of appreciation
बख़्शीश baxśīś

tip in Tamil

உதவிக்குறிப்பு, டிப், டிப் செய்ய

tip in Urdu

small amount of money left for a servant as a token of appreciation
بخشیش baxśīś

tip in Bengali

small amount of money left for a servant as a token of appreciation
বখশিশ bokhośiś
More languagesFewer languages
tip in Telugu
మొన mona
tip in Malayalam
ടിപ്പ്, നുറുങ്ങ്, ടിപ്പ് ചെയ്യാൻ
tip in Kannada
ಟಿಪ್, ಟಿಪ್ ಮಾಡಲು
tip in Punjabi
ਟਿਪ, ਟਿੱਪ, ਟਿਪ ਕਰਨ ਲਈ
tip in Gujarati
ટીપ, ટિપ, ટીપ કરવા માટે
tip in Odia
ଟିପ୍, ଟିପ, ଟିପ କରିବା ପାଇଁ
tip in Nepali
टिप, टिप गर्न
tip in Tagalog
paragala
tip in Arabic
طَرَف ṭaraf, بَقْشِيش baqšīš, بَخْشِيش baḵšīš, إِكْرَامِيَّة ʔikrāmiyya
tip in Malay
hujung, baksis
tip in Indonesian
ujung
tip in Persian
نوک nok, توک tok, انعام en'âm, بخشیش baxšiš
tip in Thai
ทิป típ, เงินทิป
tip in Vietnamese
chóp, chỏm, bo, tiền bo
tip in Myanmar
သဒ္ဓါကြေး saddha-kre:, ဘောက်ဆူး bhaukhcu:, ဘော်ဒါကြေး bhauda-kre:

Examples of tip in a sentence

  • The present-day city of Ji’an at the southern tip of Jilin province was the second capital (3-427 CE) of the Gaogouli kingdom during its middle period.2004, Xiaoneng Yang, “Early Imperial China (Qin Dynasty through Southern and Northern Dynasties Period)”, in Xiaoneng Yang, editor, New...
  • The furry nations harbour-tipt with jet, / Fair ermines spotless as the snows they press.a. 1749 (date written), James Thomson, “Winter”, in The Seasons, London: […] A[ndrew] Millar, and sold by Thomas Cadell, […], published...
  • It was on the break - the moon shone on its crest and tipped its foam with light.1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC:
  • Tips were an important part of porters' income, and at Christmas passengers felt there was extra pressure to give them - despite some perceiving the level of service to be poor.2022 December 14, David Turner, “The Edwardian Christmas getaway...”, in RAIL, number 972, page 35:

All 40 example sentences with tip

Synonyms of tip

All synonyms of tip

Forms of tip

Noun
pluraltips
pluralTIPs
Verb
third-person singular presenttips
present participletipping
past participletipped
pasttipped

Past tense of tip: tipped

Plural of tip: tips

Origin of tip

From Middle English tip, typ, tippe (“tip”), of obscure and uncertain origin. Perhaps distantly related to top. Related to Saterland Frisian Tip (“tip”), West Frisian tippe, tip (“tip”), Dutch tip (“tip”), German Low German Tip, Tippel (“tip”), dialectal German Zipf (“tip”) (diminutive Zipfel used in Standard German), Danish tip (“tip”), Swedish tipp (“tip”), Icelandic typpi (“knob, pin, penis”). Compare also Saterland Frisian Timpe (“tip”), West Frisian timpe (“tip”), Old English tæppa (“tap, spigot”), Middle High German züpfel (“pointed end, tip”).

From Late Middle English tippen, possibly from North Germanic/Scandinavian (compare Swedish tippa (“to topple over”)), or a special use of Etymology 1.

Uncertain, perhaps related to Etymology 1 and cognate with Dutch tippen, German tippen, Swedish tippa.

Words formed from tip

Phrases with tip

45 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with tip

39 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about tip

What does tip mean?
Tip means the extreme end of something, especially when pointed; e.g. the sharp end of a pencil.
What is tip in Hindi?
Tip in Hindi is नोक (nok), बख़्शीश (baxśīś). See Tip meaning in Hindi.
How do you use tip in a sentence?
The present-day city of Ji’an at the southern tip of Jilin province was the second capital (3-427 CE) of the Gaogouli kingdom during its middle period.
What part of speech is tip?
Tip can be a noun, a verb or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce tip?
Tip is pronounced /tɪp/ (UK).
What is the plural of tip?
The plural of tip is tips.

Words near tip in the dictionary

  1. tioxamast
  2. tioxaprofen
  3. tioxidazole
  4. tioxolone
  5. tioxymid
  6. tip
  7. tip back
  8. tip bait
  9. tip baited
  10. tip baiting
  11. tip baits

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: tip (page history and authors); TIP (page history and authors); Tip (page history and authors); tip (Tamil, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); tip (Malayalam, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); tip (Kannada, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); tip (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); tip (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); tip (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); tip (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-tip.ogg.

Cite this entry: “tip.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/tip. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.