lip-synch

verb

variants or lip-sync
lip-synched or lip-synced; lip-synching or lip-syncing; lip-synchs or lip-syncs

transitive verb

: to pretend to sing or say at precisely the same time with recorded sound
She lip-synched the song that was playing on the radio.

intransitive verb

: to lip-synch something
It was obvious that she was lip-synching.
lip sync noun
lip-syncher noun
or lip-syncer

Examples of lip-synch in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Drag queens strolled around taking selfies with children, medical companies handed out swag at their booths, and friend groups shopped for clothes and watched lip-synch acts onstage. Joseph Gallivan, Axios, 22 July 2024 So Roxxxy wins the lip-synch and sends the whole episode into the stratosphere. Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 7 June 2024 Studios often rely on pre-recorded tracks when filming musical numbers, which requires performers to lip-synch along on set. Zack Sharf, Variety, 21 Mar. 2024 But lip-synch scandals and an insistence by Morvan and Pilatus on singing on a follow-up album brought troubles to a head within the Milli Vanilli camp. A.d. Amorosi, Variety, 23 Jan. 2024 The first taste of the song included a street-side lip-synch video in which Smith strutted down an alley in Osaka, Japan singing over a dance-pop track. Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 18 Oct. 2023 In another interview, Morvan recalled his disbelief at Farian insisting the duo lip-synch despite their desire to provide their own vocals on their records. Starr Bowenbank, Billboard, 14 Sep. 2023 In emphasizing Bowie himself as a performer, each song is led by a dancer who lip-synchs the lyrics — an uncommon practice on the dance stage. Iris Fanger, BostonGlobe.com, 10 Aug. 2023 In secret ballrooms, queens walk the runway and lip-synch to everything from Afrobeat to pop in hopes of being crowned the winner. Ugonna-Ora Owoh, Vogue, 29 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lip-synch.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1961, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of lip-synch was circa 1961

Dictionary Entries Near lip-synch

Cite this Entry

“Lip-synch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lip-synch. Accessed 14 Oct. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!