tip

English has several words spelled tip: the pointed end of something, probably from Low German or Norse; a verb meaning to overturn or tilt, of uncertain origin; and a light tap, from which perhaps came the senses “gratuity” and “hint”.^[1][2][3]

Pronunciation

• IPA: /tɪp/^[4]

tip¹ end

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English tippe,^[1][5] not attested in Old English,^[2] probably borrowed from Middle Low German tip (“utmost point, extremity”) or Middle Dutch tip,^[2][1][5] or from a Scandinavian source such as Old Norse typpi,^[2][3] which Hoad derives from the base of top.^[3] German Zipfel is a related diminutive.^[2][1] Proposed connections with top present phonetic difficulties.^[2] Barnhart traces it ultimately to the root of Old English tæppa, the source of tap “stopper”.^[1]

Earliest recorded meaning

Probably before 1200 in Barnhart, as tippe;^[1] the late 14th century in Etymonline, where the earliest uses refer to the end of the toe, as in tiptoe (about 1390, in Chaucer).^[2][1] The slender end of a thing: about 1440 in the OED.^[6]

Semantic evolution

It was later used of the tip of a tongue, finger, arrow or pen.^[2] A small piece of metal or leather fitted to the end of something is from about 1440,^[6] and the verb, to put a tip on, from about 1395, in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.^[1][2] On the tip of one's tongue is by 1722.^[2] In the tea trade, tips are the leaf buds, by 1897.^[2][6] Tiptop, the very top, is from 1702, and first-rate from 1732.^[1] In northern dialect arse over tip means head over heels.^[7][2]

Timeline

• a. 1200 – tippe.^[1]
• c. 1390 – tiptoe.^[1]
• c. 1395 – verb, to put a tip on.^[1]
• c. 1440 – the slender end; a metal tip.^[6]
• 1702 – tiptop.^[1]
• 1722 – tip of the tongue.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. The pointed or rounded end of something long or slender: the tip of the nose.
2. A small piece or part fitted to the end of something: a filter tip.

Verb

1. To put a tip on, or cover the tip of.

Word family

• tiptoe
• tiptop
• fingertip

tip² tilt

Etymology

It is Middle English typen, tippen “to overturn”,^[1][2][5] of uncertain origin,^[1][2][3] possibly from a Scandinavian source such as Swedish tippa “to tip, dump”,^[2][1] and later perhaps influenced by the word for “end” in phrases such as tip up and tip over.^[1] Barnhart notes that the original long vowel argues against early association with that word;^[1] the spelling type was in literary use as late as 1632, and tip with a short vowel first appeared in 1581, perhaps from the past tense tipt.^[1] Etymonline also suggests a special use of the verb “to tap”.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

To knock down, overturn: probably about 1380 in Barnhart,^[1] about 1300 in Etymonline,^[2] the 14th century in the OED.^[6] A register of 1301 has the nickname Johanna Tippelevedy.^[2]

Semantic evolution

To fall over is from the mid-15th century.^[2] To tilt or cause to slope is from 1624,^[1][6] and to lean from the perpendicular by the 1660s.^[2] To empty a cart by tilting it is from 1838,^[6] and a place for dumping loads by 1862,^[2] hence a rubbish tip.^[8] Tip the scales is from 1879, figuratively by 1891,^[2] tip one's hand from poker by 1907,^[2] and the tipping point by 1972.^[2] Tipsy, unsteady from drink, is from 1577.^[1]

Timeline

• c. 1380 – to overturn.^[1]
• mid-15th century – to fall over.^[2]
• 1577 – tipsy.^[1]
• 1624 – to tilt.^[1][6]
• 1838 – to dump.^[6]
• 1862 – a dumping place.^[2]
• 1879 – tip the scales.^[2]
• 1972 – tipping point.^[2]

Modern meaning

Verb

1. To tilt or cause to tilt; to slant.
2. To overturn or upset, also tip over.
3. (British) To empty out by tilting; to dump.
4. To raise a hat in greeting.

Noun

1. (British) A place where rubbish is dumped; also an untidy place.

Word family

• tipsy

tip³ tap; gratuity

Etymology

The verb “to strike lightly” is Middle English tippen,^[2] of uncertain origin, possibly from Low German tippen “to poke, touch lightly”, related to the word for “end”,^[2][1][3] or related to tap.^[2] The senses “to give, hand” and “to give a gratuity” are perhaps from it, as in the notion of throwing a coin lightly to another;^[2][1] Hoad suggests the whole set may be the same word as the one for “end”, as if “touch with a point”.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

To strike, or to occur suddenly: about 1200 in Etymonline;^[2] figuratively in the 13th century in Hoad.^[3] A light blow: about 1450 in Barnhart, before 1466 in the OED.^[1][6]

Semantic evolution

To strike lightly, to tap, is from the 1560s, in Golding's Ovid.^[2][1] To give, hand or pass was thieves' cant from 1610,^[1][6] and to give a small present of money to a servant is from 1706–07, in Farquhar's The Beaux' Stratagem.^[1][6] The noun, a gratuity, is from 1755,^[1][2][6] and a piece of confidential information, a hint, from 1845, with the verb “to give private information” by 1883.^[1][2] Tip the wink is from 1676,^[6] tipster from 1862,^[1] and in cricket to hit a ball lightly from 1816.^[6][2] The story that tip stands for “to insure promptitude” is a popular etymology attested from 1909 and rejected by contemporary reviewers.^[2]

Timeline

• c. 1200 – to strike.^[2]
• c. 1450 – a light blow.^[1]
• 1560s – to tap.^[2]
• 1610 – to give, hand (cant).^[1]
• 1706 – to give a gratuity.^[1][6]
• 1755 – noun, a gratuity.^[1][2]
• 1845 – a hint.^[1][2]
• 1862 – tipster.^[1]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A small sum of money given for a service, in addition to the price; a gratuity.
2. A piece of useful advice or a hint.
3. A piece of inside information, as on a likely winner in a race.
4. A light blow or tap.

Verb

1. To give a tip to.
2. To predict as likely to win or succeed: tipped for the top job.
3. To strike lightly; to tap.
4. tip off: to give a warning or secret information to.

Word family

• tipster
• tip-off

Related words

• top
• tap

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e f g Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)
8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins