dip

When you dip something, you plunge it quickly into a liquid or soft substance. You might dip your toe into a swimming pool to check the water temperature.

When you finger paint, you dip a fingertip into a puddle of paint, and when you eat a snack you might dip tortilla chips into salsa. You can also say that a boat bobbing on the ocean dips, or that a bird dropping lower in the sky dips down. A dip can be a quick swim, a delicious sauce meant for dunking other foods in, or a downward slope. The Old English root, dyppan, means "immerse" or "baptize."

Primary Meanings of dip

1.
 vn
immerse briefly into a liquid so as to wet, coat, or saturate
a brief immersion
2.
 vn
appear to move downward
a depression in an otherwise level surface
3.
 v
take a small amount from
4.
 n
(physics) the angle that a magnetic needle makes with the plane of the horizon
Full Definitions of dip
1

v immerse briefly into a liquid so as to wet, coat, or saturate

“dip the garment into the cleaning solution”
“dip the brush into the paint”
Synonyms:
douse, dunk, plunge, souse
Types:
sop
dip into liquid
douse, duck
dip into a liquid
dabble
dip a foot or hand briefly into a liquid
Type of:
immerse, plunge
thrust or throw into

v dip into a liquid

“He dipped into the pool”
Synonyms:
douse, duck
Type of:
douse, dunk, plunge, souse
immerse briefly into a liquid so as to wet, coat, or saturate

v dip into a liquid while eating

Synonyms:
dunk
Type of:
eat
take in solid food

v immerse in a disinfectant solution

“dip the sheep”
Type of:
immerse, plunge
thrust or throw into

v stain an object by immersing it in a liquid

Type of:
stain
color with a liquid dye or tint

v place (candle wicks) into hot, liquid wax

Type of:
create from raw material, create from raw stuff
make from scratch

n a brief immersion

Type of:
immersion, submergence, submerging, submersion
sinking until covered completely with water

n a brief swim in water

Synonyms:
plunge
Type of:
swim, swimming
the act of swimming

n tasty mixture or liquid into which bite-sized foods are dipped

Types:
show 4 types...
hide 4 types...
bean dip
a dip made of cooked beans
cheese dip
a dip made of cheeses
clam dip
a dip made of clams and soft cream cheese
guacamole
a dip made of mashed avocado mixed with chopped onions and other seasonings
Type of:
condiment
a preparation (a sauce or relish or spice) to enhance flavor or enjoyment

n a candle that is made by repeated dipping in a pool of wax or tallow

Type of:
candle, taper, wax light
stick of wax with a wick in the middle
2

v appear to move downward

“The sun dipped below the horizon”
Synonyms:
sink
Types:
subside
sink to a lower level or form a depression
Type of:
decline
go down

v go down momentarily

“Prices dipped”
Type of:
decline, go down, wane
grow smaller

v plunge (one's hand or a receptacle) into a container

“He dipped into his pocket”
Type of:
immerse, plunge
thrust or throw into

v scoop up by plunging one's hand or a ladle below the surface

“dip water out of a container”
Type of:
lift out, scoop, scoop out, scoop up, take up
take out or up with or as if with a scoop

v lower briefly

“She dipped her knee”
Type of:
bring down, get down, let down, lower, take down
move something or somebody to a lower position

v switch (a car's headlights) from a higher to a lower beam

Synonyms:
dim
Type of:
change intensity
increase or decrease in intensity

v slope downwards

“Our property dips towards the river”
Type of:
incline, pitch, slope
be at an angle

n a depression in an otherwise level surface

“there was a dip in the road”
Type of:
depression, impression, imprint
a concavity in a surface produced by pressing

n a sudden sharp decrease in some quantity

“a dip in prices”
Synonyms:
drop, fall, free fall
Types:
correction
a drop in stock market activity or stock prices following a period of increases
voltage drop
a decrease in voltage along a conductor through which current is flowing
Type of:
decrease, decrement
the amount by which something decreases

n a gymnastic exercise on the parallel bars in which the body is lowered and raised by bending and straightening the arms

Type of:
gymnastic exercise
(gymnastics) an exercise designed to develop and display strength and agility and balance (usually performed with or on some gymnastic apparatus)

n a thief who steals from the pockets or purses of others in public places

Synonyms:
cutpurse, pickpocket
Type of:
stealer, thief
a criminal who takes property belonging to someone else with the intention of keeping it or selling it
3

v take a small amount from

“I had to dip into my savings to buy him this present”
Type of:
draw, draw off, take out, withdraw
remove (a commodity) from (a supply source)
4

n (physics) the angle that a magnetic needle makes with the plane of the horizon

Synonyms:
angle of dip, inclination, magnetic dip, magnetic inclination
Type of:
angle
the space between two lines or planes that intersect; the inclination of one line to another; measured in degrees or radians

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