Meaning
5 senses(informal, intransitive)To be involved in a (generally small) argument or disagreement; to squabble.
(British, India, informal, intransitive)Synonym of tiffin (“to eat a (light) midday meal or snack; to have lunch, to lunch”).
(archaic, informal, obsolete, slang, transitive)To drink (liquor), especially slowly or in small amounts; to sip.
(archaic, informal, obsolete, reflexive, slang, transitive)To deck out or dress (someone or oneself, or their body or hair).
(archaic, informal, intransitive, obsolete, slang)To deck out or dress one's body or hair.
Examples
5 sentencesMary had a tiff with her boyfriend.
We had a little tiff.
Ми трохи погиркалися.
I had a tiff with my boyfriend.
What if it was just a tiff between two friends?
I expected him to come back. It was just a slight tiff.
Origin
The origin of the noun is unknown; it is possibly originally dialectal and may be onomatopThe origin of the noun is unknown; it is possibly originally dialectal and may be onomatopoeic, representing the sound of a small puff of air or gas. The verb is derived from the noun.
Probably a back-formation from or clipping of tiff(in) (“(light) midday meal or snack, luncheon”).
The origin of the noun is unknown; it may be onomatopoeic, representing the sound of liquor being sipped. The verb is derived from the noun.
From Middle English tiffen, tif, tiffe (“to adorn, dress up; to arrange (a hairstyle); to disguise”), from Old French tifer, tiffer (“to adorn, dress up”) (modern French attifer (“to deck out”)), from Frankish *tipfōn, *tippōn (“to decorate”), possibly related to Proto-Germanic *tuppaz (“plait of hair, tuft; summit, top”) (see the further etymology at that entry).
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Forms
tiffs, tiffing, tiffed, tiffedSynonyms
13 synonymsWord family
2 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle