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lip-
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pref.
Variant of lipo-.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
lip (lĭp)
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n.
1. Anatomy
a. Either of two fleshy structures that surround the opening of the mouth in humans and other mammals.
b. In humans, the smooth brownish to reddish border of the lip.
2. A structure or part that encircles or bounds an orifice, as:
a. Anatomy A labium.
b. The margin of flesh around a wound.
c. Either of the margins of the aperture of a gastropod shell.
d. A rim, as of a vessel, bell, or crater.
3. Botany One of the two divisions of a bilabiate corolla or calyx, as in the snapdragon, or the modified median petal of an orchid flower.
4. The tip of a pouring spout, as on a pitcher.
5. Slang Insolent talk.
tr.v. lipped, lip·ping, lips
1.
a. To touch the lips to.
b. To kiss.
2. To utter.
3. To lap or splash against.
4. Sports To hit a golf ball so that it touches the edge of (the hole) without dropping in.
[Middle English, from Old English lippa; see leb- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]
lipless adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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