licked; licking; licks
1
a(1)
: to draw the tongue over
(2)
: to flicker over like a tongue
b
: to take into the mouth with the tongue : lap
1
2
3
a
: a natural salt deposit (such 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
Synonyms
Verb
- bash
- baste
- bat
- batter
- beat
- belabor
- belt
- birch
- bludgeon
- buffet
- bung up
- club
- curry
- do
- drub
- fib [British]
- flog
- hammer
- hide
- lace
- lambaste
- lambast
- lash
- lather
- maul
- mess (up)
- paddle
- pelt
- pommel
- pound
- pummel
- punch out
- rough (up)
- slate
- slog
- switch
- tan
- thrash
- thresh
- thump
- tromp
- wallop
- whale
- whip
- whop
- whap
- whup
- work over
Noun
- bang
- bash
- bat
- beat
- belt
- biff
- blow
- bop
- box
- buffet
- bust
- chop
- clap
- clip
- clout
- crack
- cuff
- dab
- douse [British]
- fillip
- hack
- haymaker
- hit
- hook
- knock
- larrup [dialect]
- lash
- 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
- whap
Examples of lick in a Sentence
Verb
He licked the stamp before putting it on the envelope.
The dog licked at the plate.
She licked the sauce off her finger.
The cat licked the milk off her paws.
Flames were already licking the ceiling.
Flames were already licking at the ceiling.
Noun
Could I have a lick of your ice cream?
It just needs a lick of paint.
Recent Examples on the Web
Anders Hagstrom, Fox News, 2 Mar. 2024
In an abject effort to persuade Lee not to reveal this to her, Oh barks like a dog, licks Lee’s shoes, and cuts off his own tongue with scissors.
—Jia Tolentino, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
The Arkansas Razorbacks lick their wounds after the SEC Tournament and take out their frustrations out on their upcoming opponents.
—Tony Holt, arkansasonline.com, 8 Apr. 2024
Constant licking around the lips and surrounding skin can even result in a rash around the mouth area.
—Jocelyn Solis-Moreira, CNN, 7 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, from neighboring countries, the perpetrators licked their wounds, rearmed, and resolved to finish the job.
—Jonathan M. Hansen, TIME, 7 Apr. 2024
As the season begins, Ava is licking her wounds over having been fired; for there to be a show at all, Ava needs to return to the fold with a woman who’s hurt her deeply.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 4 Apr. 2024
The short clip featured the perfect soundtrack — an innocuously seductive hip-hop beat — as Fripp caressed the neck of his six-string, licked his lips, and made faces that struck a perfect balance between smoldering and stupefied.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 1 Apr. 2024
Because our cat cuddled and licked at the catnip toy, the fuzzy exterior did feel a little crusty by the time our testing period was complete, but none of the toy’s fur appeared to come off in the process.
—Cai Cramer, Peoplemag, 16 Feb. 2024
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 29 Mar. 2024
When a cat with this bacteria in their saliva bites, licks, or scratches you, the resulting infection is called cat-scratch disease.
—Dr. Roshini Raj, Health, 3 Mar. 2024
They’re kind of driven by the lick and the vibes that Charlie creates.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 30 Nov. 2023
Eric [Clapton] came in, played great, just one tasty lick after another.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 22 Mar. 2024
With guitar licks and drum patterns sourced from Afrobeats, this culture-bridging track could very well become a sleeper hit as 2024 barrels on.
—Kyle Denis, Billboard, 28 Feb. 2024
The score is loaded with Mahler-style bombast, jazz licks and an ongoing flirtation with atonality.
—Scott Hocker, theweek, 5 Jan. 2024
Furthermore, the night concluding with Satriani’s set was a perfect way to end the evening of many riffs & licks.
—Quentin Singer, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
Only the salvation of an unexpected sisterly connection between Gretchen and Alma makes a lick of sense.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2024
Verb
The video shows student volunteers who were paired up, one set sitting on chairs while the others laid down below them and licked peanut butter off of their toes.
—Anders Hagstrom, Fox News, 2 Mar. 2024
In an abject effort to persuade Lee not to reveal this to her, Oh barks like a dog, licks Lee’s shoes, and cuts off his own tongue with scissors.
—Jia Tolentino, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2024
The Arkansas Razorbacks lick their wounds after the SEC Tournament and take out their frustrations out on their upcoming opponents.
—Tony Holt, arkansasonline.com, 8 Apr. 2024
Constant licking around the lips and surrounding skin can even result in a rash around the mouth area.
—Jocelyn Solis-Moreira, CNN, 7 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, from neighboring countries, the perpetrators licked their wounds, rearmed, and resolved to finish the job.
—Jonathan M. Hansen, TIME, 7 Apr. 2024
As the season begins, Ava is licking her wounds over having been fired; for there to be a show at all, Ava needs to return to the fold with a woman who’s hurt her deeply.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 4 Apr. 2024
The short clip featured the perfect soundtrack — an innocuously seductive hip-hop beat — as Fripp caressed the neck of his six-string, licked his lips, and made faces that struck a perfect balance between smoldering and stupefied.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 1 Apr. 2024
Because our cat cuddled and licked at the catnip toy, the fuzzy exterior did feel a little crusty by the time our testing period was complete, but none of the toy’s fur appeared to come off in the process.
—Cai Cramer, Peoplemag, 16 Feb. 2024
Noun
Humble country touchstones—banjo licks, lyrics about boots and spurs—are stitched, with seams showing, to dizzying dance beats, lushly stacked vocal harmonies, and cartoonishly giddy raps and chants.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 29 Mar. 2024
When a cat with this bacteria in their saliva bites, licks, or scratches you, the resulting infection is called cat-scratch disease.
—Dr. Roshini Raj, Health, 3 Mar. 2024
They’re kind of driven by the lick and the vibes that Charlie creates.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 30 Nov. 2023
Eric [Clapton] came in, played great, just one tasty lick after another.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 22 Mar. 2024
With guitar licks and drum patterns sourced from Afrobeats, this culture-bridging track could very well become a sleeper hit as 2024 barrels on.
—Kyle Denis, Billboard, 28 Feb. 2024
The score is loaded with Mahler-style bombast, jazz licks and an ongoing flirtation with atonality.
—Scott Hocker, theweek, 5 Jan. 2024
Furthermore, the night concluding with Satriani’s set was a perfect way to end the evening of many riffs & licks.
—Quentin Singer, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
Only the salvation of an unexpected sisterly connection between Gretchen and Alma makes a lick of sense.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lick.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near lick
Cite this Entry
“Lick.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lick. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
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