quip
/kwɪp/ noun, verb
Forms quips quipping quipped
- noun A smart, sarcastic turn or jest; a taunt; a severe retort or comeback; a gibe.
- verb (intransitive) To make a quip.
- verb (transitive) To taunt; to mock with quips.
Synonyms
riff. See also Thesaurus:joke scintillate epigram wisecrack crack sally gag
Etymology
From a shortening of earlier quippy, perhaps from Latin quippe (“indeed”), ultimately quid (“what”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A smart, sarcastic turn or jest; a taunt; a severe retort; a gibe.
- verb To taunt; to treat with quips.
- verb To scoff; to use taunts. Sir H. Sidney.
Etymology [Cf. W. chwip a quick flirt or turn, chwipio to whip, to move briskly, and E. whip. Cf. Quib, Quibble.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “quip”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details