quip
Americannoun
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quips
plural
verb (used without object)
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quips,
present (3rd person singular)
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quipped,
past participle, past
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quipping
present participle
noun
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a sarcastic or cutting remark; gibe
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a witty or clever saying
a merry quip
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archaic another word for quibble
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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quipsimple
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quipssimple
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have quippedperfect
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has quippedperfect
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am quippingprogressive
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are quippingprogressive
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is quippingprogressive
-
have been quippingperfect progressive
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has been quippingperfect progressive
Past
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quippedsimple
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had quippedperfect
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was quippingprogressive
-
were quippingprogressive
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had been quippingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of quip
1525–35; back formation from quippy quip < Latin quippe indeed
Explanation
A quip — a short, witty comment — can be pleasant, wise, or sarcastic, but usually carries an element of humor. A quip is a witty or clever remark that sounds spur-of-the-moment. A successful quip must sound offhand, as though it were an afterthought, even if the speaker has been honing the statement for days. Dorothy Parker was a famous writer known for her quick quips, such as, "The best way to keep children home is to make the home atmosphere pleasant — and let the air out of the tires."
Vocabulary lists containing quip
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It turns out that “indefinitely” has lasted longer than we expected—another confirmation of Adam Smith’s quip that “there is a great deal of ruin in a nation.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
However, when Minton Beddoes noted his almost 250 million followers on X at one point during the interview, Musk was quick to quip: "Popular guy".
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
My quip naturally made me recall Donald Trump’s 2015 campaign comment about how he loves the poorly educated.
From Salon ● Jul. 6, 2026
The movie works backward from a famous 1961 Eisenhower quip to JFK that attributed his success in Normandy, France, to the Allies having “better meteorologists than the Germans.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026
Perhaps once he could evoke gales of laughter with a quip, but the sea had taken that power from him, along with half his wits and all his memory.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
The British adventurer makes her acrobatic moves against a background of realistic graphics, complete with her trademark sarcastic quips.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
“You’re a walking Crown Heights,” quips a character, unfunnily.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
“Look, if you’re a television writer and you have a proposal scene and you don’t let Jessica Williams run with it, you’re cheating yourself,” quips Lawrence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
The paper says Knox, who was convicted and later acquitted of murdering British student Meredith Kercher in Italy in 2007, made "quips" about crime scenes during her performance.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
“Don’t let me talk you into playing chess,” she quips, repeating Asher’s warning he’d given me when I’d first met her.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
Osman then quipped: "You do look a bit like a competition winner," to which Widdecombe agreed.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
"My mother was a Democrat and my daddy was a Republican, so I’m a hypocrite," she quipped.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Graham quipped in his final days that he couldn’t die now because he was close to achieving both goals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
“And if you’re like me, I don’t even remember what I ate two days ago,” Stevens quipped.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
“We’ll get someone with scuba gear to go down there on a treasure dive,” quipped Goddard.
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
Albanese took to the stage at that event to declare "Modi is the Boss", quipping that his crowd-pulling power eclipsed even that of US rock icon Bruce Springsteen.
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
His bespectacled, quipping presence lent the show some book-world class, the new medium poaching prestige from the old.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026
This achievement is all the more remarkable considering that, in the next theater over, Fanning was punching, kicking and quipping in “Predator: Badlands.”
From Salon ● Jan. 24, 2026
Lycett put a post on Instagram two weeks ago quipping that Tyseley's tip was "superior" to one in Kings Norton, prompting hundreds of comments from Brummies about their preferred dumps.
From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2025
It was the meeting-place of the little "quoting, quipping, quaffing" club of fellow-workers in Bohemia; and Lemon, it was explained, had dabbled both in verse and the lighter drama, efforts which were "not half bad."
From The History of "Punch" by M. H. (Marion Harry) Spielmann
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
