fillip
A sharp strike or tap made using this action, or by other meansA sharp strike or tap made using this action, or (by extension) by other means.
Meaning
4 sensesA sharp strike or tap made using this action, or (by extension) by other means.
(broadly)Something unimportant, a trifle; also, the brief time it takes to flick one's finger (see noun sense 1); a jiffy.
(broadly)Something that excites or stimulates.
This measure gave a fillip to the housing market.
The athlete’s victory provided a much-needed fillip for national pride.
(archaic)The action of holding the tip of a finger against the thumb and then releasing it with a snap; a flick.
Schnalzen
щелчо́кščelčók, щёлкščolk
- anything that tends to arouse
Translations
8 languagesOrigin
From Middle English filippen, philippe (“to flick or snap a finger from against the thumb”From Middle English filippen, philippe (“to flick or snap a finger from against the thumb”); further origin uncertain, but probably imitative. See flip. It is not clear whether the verb is derived from the noun, or vice versa.
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