Tip

The current usage of "tip," giving money for good service, has been in use for several centuries.

Name for one of the two wires in a telephone twisted pair, according to USOC. (Compare to ring.)

Typically the reference voltage line on copper telephone communications pairs from standard voice telephone circuits up to DS-3 lines. The term is sometimes used in digital communications cables (e.g. Ethernet) to determine the transmit line.

Historically, tip was the "tip" of a plug which resembled a 1/4" stereo connector.

The tip in residential telephone wiring is the green, black, or white wire for lines one through three, respectively. For high-density wiring as run by telephone companies, the tip is usually has a white jacket with a colored stripe. In RJ modular connectors like RJ-45 and RJ-11, tip lines are the odd-numbered pins.

It should be noted that most standard contemporary telephones are not subject to restrictions on polarity of the telephone circuit. Tip and ring may be reversed (usually accidentally) in household wiring with no effect on telephone sets.

With reference to Webster 1913's entry, the phrase "to tip the wink" uses the word "tip" to mean "to give". Along the same lines, a commonly used phrase in Britain was "to tip up" for something, such as a round of drinks for example. This also means "to give" or "to pay".

It is believed that the use of the English word "tip" to mean "gift" is derived from the Latin word stipis, which means "gift".

See: stipend

to tip

To give or lend.

Tip me your daddle ; give me your hand.

Tip me a hog ; give me a shilling.

To tip the lion ; to flatten a man's nose with the thumb, and, at the same time to extend his mouth, with the fingers, thereby giving him a sort of lion-like countenauce.

To tip the velvet ; tonguing woman.

To tip all nine ; to knock down all the nine pins at once, at the game of bows or skittles : tipping, at these gaines, is slightly touching the tops of the pins with the bowl.

Tip ; a draught; don't spoil his tip.

The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue.

Tip (?), n. [Akin to D. & Dan. tip, LG. & Sw. tipp, G. zipfel, and probably to E. tap a plug, a pipe.]

1.

The point or extremity of anything; a pointed or somewhat sharply rounded end; the end; as, the tip of the finger; the tip of a spear.

To the very tip of the nose. Shak.

2.

An end piece or part; a piece, as a cap, nozzle, ferrule, or point, applied to the extreme end of anything; as, a tip for an umbrella, a shoe, a gas burner, etc.

3. Hat Manuf.

A piece of stiffened lining pasted on the inside of a hat crown.

4.

A thin, boarded brush made of camel's hair, used by gilders in lifting gold leaf.

5.

Rubbish thrown from a quarry.

© Webster 1913.

Tip (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tipped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tipping.]

To form a point upon; to cover the tip, top, or end of; as, to tip anything with gold or silver.

With truncheon tipped with iron head. Hudibras.

Tipped with jet, Fair ermines spotless as the snows they press. Thomson.

© Webster 1913.

Tip, v. t. [Cf. LG. tippen to tap, Sw. tippa, and E. tap to strike gently.]

1.

To strike slightly; to tap.

A third rogue tips me by the elbow. Swift.

2.

To bestow a gift, or douceur, upon; to give a present to; as, to tip a servant.

Thackeray.

3.

To lower one end of, or to throw upon the end; to tilt; as, to tip a cask; to tip a cart.

To tip off, to pour out, as liquor. -- To tip over, to overturn. -- To tip the wink, to direct a wink; to give a hint or suggestion by, or as by, a wink. [Slang] Pope. -- To tip up, to turn partly over by raising one end.

© Webster 1913.

Tip, v. i.

To fall on, or incline to, one side.

Bunyan.

To tip off, to fall off by tipping.

© Webster 1913.

Tip, n. [See Tip to strike slightly, and cf. Tap a slight blow.]

1.

A light touch or blow; a tap.

2.

A gift; a douceur; a fee.

3.

A hint, or secret intimation, as to the chances in a horse race, or the like.

© Webster 1913.