DictionaryAI

lip

LIP/lɪp/

Plurallips

Verblips, lipping, lipped

17 meanings of lip

Practice

  1. 1
    mouth edgenouncountable
    One of the two soft, fleshy edges around the opening of your mouth.

    She bit her lip while waiting for the test results.

    He wiped his lips with a napkin after dinner.

    UsageSay bite your lip or lick your lips.

    Note
  2. 2
    top edgenouncountable
    The edge or rim of something, like a jug, a cup, or a cliff.

    Like the spout on a teapot that guides the water out.

    Pour slowly from the lip of the jug so it doesn't spill.

    Chips along the lips of the old mugs made them hard to drink from.

    UsageSay the lip of a cup.

    Similarrim, edge, brim, spout

    Note
  3. 3
    speak silentlyverbtransitive
    To move your lips like you are speaking, but make no sound.

    He lipped the answer to me across the classroom.

    From the stage, he tried to lip 'thank you' to his mom.

    UsagePeople usually say mouth the words.

    Similarmouth, mime

    Note
  4. 4
    flesh bordernouncountable
    A soft edge on the body shaped like a lip, such as the edge of a wound.

    The doctor gently cleaned the lips of the wound.

    The nurse cleaned each lip of the wound before stitching it.

    Similaredge, margin

  5. 5
    makeupnouncolloquialcountable or uncountableabbreviationclipping
    Short for lipstick: colored makeup that you put on your lips.

    She chose a soft pink lip for her job interview.

    She wore a bold red lip to the party.

    UsageSay a red lip or some red lip.

    Note
  6. 6
    shell openingnouncountable or uncountable
    One of the edges around the opening of a snail or other one-shelled animal's shell.

    Like the rounded rim around the mouth of a jug.

    The snail's shell had a thick, curled lip around its opening.

    You can tell the shell is mature when the lip grows thick.

    Note
  7. 7
    orchid petalnouncountable or uncountable
    A petal or part of a flower shaped like a lip, as in orchids or mint.

    Like a small platform that sticks out for insects to land on.

    The orchid's lip is shaped like a tiny landing pad for bees.

    On this flower, the lip hangs lower than the other petals.

    Note

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of lip apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

Old English had lippa, which became lippe in Middle English and later lip. Through older Germanic forms, it may go back to a very old root that may have meant "to hang loosely" or "droop".