to plunge (something, as a cloth or sponge) temporarily into a liquid, so as to moisten it, dye it, or cause it to take up some of the liquid: He dipped the brush into the paint bucket.
2.
to raise or take up by a bailing, scooping, or ladling action: to dip water out of a boat; to dip ice cream from a container.
3.
to lower and raise: to dip a flag in salutation.
4.
to immerse (a sheep, hog, etc.) in a solution to destroy germs, parasites, or the like.
5.
to make (a candle) by repeatedly plunging a wick into melted tallow or wax.
6.
Nautical. to lower and rehoist (a yard of a lugsail) when coming about in tacking.
7.
Archaic. to baptize by immersion.
8.
Obsolete. to moisten or wet as if by immersion.
–verb (used without object)
9.
to plunge into water or other liquid and emerge quickly: The boat dipped into the waves.
10.
to put the hand, a dipper, etc., down into a liquid or a container, esp. in order to remove something (often fol. by in or into): He dipped into the jar for an olive.
11.
to withdraw something, esp. in small amounts (usually fol. by in or into): to dip into savings.
12.
to sink or drop down: The sun dipped below the horizon.
13.
to incline or slope downward: At that point the road dips into a valley.
14.
to decrease slightly or temporarily: Stock-market prices often dip on Fridays.
15.
to engage slightly in a subject (often fol. by in or into): to dip into astronomy.
16.
to read here and there in a book, subject, or author's work (often fol. by in or into): to dip into Plato.
17.
South Midland and Southern U.S.to take snuff.
–noun
18.
the act of dipping.
19.
that which is taken up by dipping.
20.
a quantity taken up by dipping; the amount that a scoop, ladle, dipper, etc., will hold.
21.
a scoop of ice cream.
22.
Chiefly Northern U.S.a liquid or soft substance into which something is dipped.
23.
a creamy mixture of savory foods for scooping with potato chips, crackers, and the like, often served as an hors d'oeuvre, esp. with cocktails.
24.
a momentary lowering; a sinking down.
25.
a moderate or temporary decrease: a dip in stock-market prices.
26.
a downward extension, inclination, slope, or course.
27.
the amount of such extension.
28.
a hollow or depression in the land.
29.
a brief swim: She took a dip in the ocean and then sat on the beach for an hour.
30.
Geology,Mining. the downward inclination of a vein or stratum with reference to the horizontal.
31.
the angular amount by which the horizon lies below the level of the eye.
32.
Also called angle of dip, inclination, magnetic dip, magnetic inclination.the angle that a freely rotating magnetic needle makes with the plane of the horizon.
33.
a short, downward plunge, as of an airplane.
34.
a candle made by repeatedly dipping a wick into melted tallow or wax.
35.
Gymnastics. an exercise on the parallel bars in which the elbows are bent until the chin is on a level with the bars, and then the body is elevated by straightening the arms.
36.
Slang. a pickpocket.
—Idiom
37.
at the dip, Nautical. not fully raised; halfway up the halyard: an answering pennant flown at the dip. Compare close(def. 75b).
[Origin: bef. 1000; ME dippen (v.), OE dyppan; akin to G taufen to baptize, and to deep]
—Related forms
dip·pa·ble, adjective, noun
—Synonyms 1. duck. Dip,immerse,plunge refer to putting something into liquid. To dip is to put down into a liquid quickly or partially and lift out again: to dip a finger into water to test the temperature. Immerse denotes a lowering into a liquid until covered by it: to immerse meat in salt water. Plunge adds a suggestion of force or suddenness to the action of dipping: to plunge a chicken into boiling water before stripping off the feathers. 2. scoop. 9. dive.
To plunge briefly into a liquid, as in order to wet, coat, or saturate.
To color or dye by immersing: dip Easter eggs.
To immerse (a sheep or other animal) in a disinfectant solution.
To form (a candle) by repeatedly immersing a wick in melted wax or tallow.
To galvanize or plate (metal) by immersion.
To scoop up by plunging the hand or a receptacle below the surface, as of a liquid; ladle: dip water out of a bucket.
To lower and raise (a flag) in salute.
To lower or drop (something) suddenly: dipped my head to avoid the branch.
Slang To pick the pockets of.
v.
intr.
To plunge into water or other liquid and come out quickly.
To plunge the hand or a receptacle into liquid or a container, especially so as to take something up or out: I dipped into my pocket for some coins.
To withdraw a small amount from a fund: We dipped into our savings.
To drop down or sink out of sight suddenly: The sun dipped below the horizon.
To drop suddenly before climbing. Used of an aircraft.
To slope downward; decline: The road dipped.
To decline slightly and usually temporarily: Sales dipped after Christmas.
Geology To lie at an angle to the horizontal plane, as a rock stratum or vein.
To read here and there at random; browse: dipping into Chaucer.
To investigate a subject superficially; dabble: dipped into psychology.
Slang To steal by picking pockets.
n.
A brief plunge or immersion, especially a quick swim.
A liquid into which something is dipped, as for dyeing or disinfecting.
A savory creamy mixture into which crackers, raw vegetables, or other foods may be dipped.
An amount taken up by dipping.
A container for dipping.
A candle made by repeated dipping in tallow or wax.
A downward slope; a decline.
A sharp downward course; a drop: a dip in prices.
Geology The downward inclination of a rock stratum or vein in reference to the plane of the horizon.
Linguistics A part of a phrase or sentence that is unstressed or less strongly stressed relative to surrounding words, as the words I and to in I have to go.
Poetry The unstressed portion of a metrical foot.
Magnetic dip.
A hollow or depression.
Sports A gymnastic exercise on the parallel bars in which the body is lowered by bending the elbows until the chin reaches the level of the bars and then is raised by straightening the arms.
Slang A pickpocket.
Slang A foolish or stupid person.
[Middle English dippen, from Old English dyppan; see dheub- in Indo-European roots.]
Synonyms: These verbs mean to immerse briefly into a liquid: dipped her hand into the basin; doused his head in the shower; playmates ducking each other in the pool; dunked his cookies in milk.
Dip\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dippedor Dipt (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Dipping.] [OE. dippen, duppen, AS. dyppan; akin to Dan. dyppe, Sw. doppa, and to AS. d?pan to baptize, OS. d?pian, D. doopen, G. taufen, Sw. d["o]pa, Goth. daupjan, Lith. dubus deep, hollow, OSlav. dupl? hollow, and to E. dive. Cf. Deep, Dive.]1. To plunge or immerse; especially, to put for a moment into a liquid; to insert into a fluid and withdraw again. The priest shall dip his finger in the blood. --Lev. iv. 6. [Wat'ry fowl] now dip their pinions in the briny deep. --Pope. While the prime swallow dips his wing. --Tennyson. 2. To immerse for baptism; to baptize by immersion. --Book of Common Prayer. Fuller. 3. To wet, as if by immersing; to moisten. [Poetic] A cold shuddering dew Dips me all o'er. --Milton. 4. To plunge or engage thoroughly in any affair. He was . . . dipt in the rebellion of the Commons. --Dryden. 5. To take out, by dipping a dipper, ladle, or other receptacle, into a fluid and removing a part; -- often with out; as, to dip water from a boiler; to dip out water. 6. To engage as a pledge; to mortgage. [Obs.] Live on the use and never dip thy lands. --Dryden. Dipped candle, a candle made by repeatedly dipping a wick in melted tallow. To dip snuff, to take snuff by rubbing it on the gums and teeth. [Southern U. S.] To dip the colors (Naut.), to lower the colors and return them to place; -- a form of naval salute.
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Audio Help [dip] Pronunciation Key verb, dipped or (Archaic
