lick

²lick

noun

Definition of LICK

1

a : an act or instance of licking b : a small amount : bit <couldn't swim a lick> c : a hasty careless effort

2

a : a sharp hit : blow b : a directed effort : crack —usually used in plural —usually used in the phrase get in one's licks

3

a : a natural salt deposit (as a salt spring) that animals lick b : a block of often medicated saline preparation given to livestock to lick

4

: a musical figure; specifically : an interpolated and usually improvised figure or flourish

5

: a critical thrust : dig, barb

— lick and a promise

: a perfunctory performance of a task

Examples of LICK

1. Could I have a lick of your ice cream?
2. It just needs a lick of paint.

First Known Use of LICK

1603

Related to LICK

Synonyms: bang, bash, bat, beat, belt, biff, bop, box, buffet, bust, chop, clap, clip, clout, crack, cuff, dab, douse [British], fillip, hack, haymaker, hit, hook, knock, larrup [dialect], lash, ¹blow, pelt, pick, plump, poke, pound, punch, rap, slam, slap, slug, smack, smash, sock, spank, stinger, stripe, stroke, swat, swipe, switch, thud, thump, thwack, wallop, welt, whack, wham, whop (also whap)

Related Words: counter, counterblow, counterpunch, counterstroke; body blow, hand, kick, knee, left, one-two, rabbit punch, right, right-hander, roundhouse, shiver, sidewinder, sucker punch, swing, uppercut; cruncher, kayo, knockdown, knockout, KO; bastinado (or bastinade), battering, beating, bludgeoning, clobbering, cudgeling (or cudgelling), drubbing, hammering, lambasting, licking, pasting, pounding, pummeling (also pummelling), thrashing; flogging, walloping, whip, whipping

Near Antonyms: abundance, barrel, boatload, bucket, bundle, bushel, deal, fistful, gobs, heaps, lashings (also lashins) [chiefly British], loads, lot, mass, mess, mountain, much, oodles, passel, peck, pile, plenty, potful, profusion, quantity, raft, reams, scads, stack, wad, wealth; volume; bonanza, embarrassment, excess, overabundance, overage, overflow, overkill, overmuch, oversupply, superabundance, superfluity, surfeit, surplus; chunk, hunk, lump, slab

see all synonyms and antonyms

[+]more[-]hide