Lip

How to spell lip

3 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce lip

What does lip mean?

1. nounEither of the two soft fleshy edges that surround the opening of the mouth.
2. nounThe projecting rim or edge of a container, surface, or hollow object.
3. nounBold, cheeky, or disrespectful talk back to someone in authority.

Lip in a sentence

• She bit her lower lip while reading the report.

• Coffee dripped down from the lip of the mug.

• The manager would not tolerate any lip from the new staff.

• The cold wind left a crack in his upper lip.

• The jug has a small pouring lip on one side.

• That teenager gave the referee plenty of lip after the call.

Where does lip come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This is an old native English word, descending from the Old English lippa, which named the fleshy folds around the mouth just as it does today. It belongs to a wider Germanic family that includes the Dutch lip and the German Lippe, and it ultimately traces back to a root meaning the edge or border of something. That same idea of a 'border' explains how the word came to describe the raised rim of a jug, a cup, or any hollow vessel. The verb sense, to brush or graze something with the lips, developed naturally from the noun. Because the word is so short, ancient, and phonetically regular, its spelling has stayed remarkably stable through the centuries.

How the word is built

• lip (single root from Old English lippa, the fleshy edge of the mouth)