From Middle English snipe, snype (“a type of bird”), from Old Norse snípa, as in mýrisnípa (“moor snipe”). Akin to Norwegian snipe.
* The verb originated in the 1770s among soldiers in British India, where a hunter skilled enough to kill the elusive bird was dubbed a sniper. The term sniper was first attested in 1824, in the sense of sharpshooter.
Meanings
Any of various limicoline game birds of the genera Gallinago, Lymnocryptes and Coenocorypha in the family Scolopacidae, having a long, slender, nearly straight beak.
A fool; a blockhead.
For I mine own gained knowledge should profane,/ If I would time expend with such a snipe,/ But for my sport and profit. c. 1603, William Shakespeare, Othello, act I, scene 3, line 390:
A shot fired from a concealed place.
(slang) A member of the engineering department on a ship.
fi pölkkypää (fool, blockhead) · tr bataklık çulluğu (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · sl sloka (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · af snip (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gd crom-riabhach (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nb bekkasin (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nn skoddefugl (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gl babeco (fool, blockhead) · gd gobhar-adhair (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · br gioc'h (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · cs bekasina (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · lv sloka (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nrf bécassine (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · ro nărod (fool, blockhead) · is hrossagaukur (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gl chiva (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gl aguaneta (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · kw kiogh (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · da bekkasin (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · ro becață (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nn mekregauk (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · pl kszyk (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · hy մորակտցար (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · pt narceja (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · tt чуллык (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · it beccaccino (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · fi tollo (fool, blockhead) · ca becadell (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · ast gacha (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · tr su çulluğu (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · dsb bjakut (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · vi dẽ giun (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · es becacina (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · pl bekas (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · es agachadiza (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · fr bécassine (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · es caica (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · hu szalonka (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · fo snípa (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · ro prost (fool, blockhead) · es becardón (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nn humregauk (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · sh šljuka (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · da hingstfugl (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · ro nerod (fool, blockhead) · fi laivamekaanikko (naval slang: member of the Engineering Department) · de Schnepfe (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nn jordgeit (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · bg бекас (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · pl bekas kszyk (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · bg глупак (fool, blockhead) · bg изстрел от засада (shot from a concealed place) · hu orvlövés (shot from a concealed place) · kk тауқұдірет (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · ja 田鴫 (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · wyi kruk-wor-rum (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · fi tomppeli (fool, blockhead) · ru бека́с (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gl gacha (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · ga naoscach (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · cy gïach (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · cmn 沙錐鳥 /沙锥鸟 (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · mk шљука (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · th นกปากซ่อม (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nv tábąąsdísí (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · io bekaseto (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gd naosg (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · el μπεκατσίνι (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · es agachona (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nn rossgauk (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · nl snip (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gd bod-saic (Tiree) (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · it beccaccia (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · fi salalaukaus (shot from a concealed place) · nn bekkasin (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gl babiolo (fool, blockhead) · pt tolo (fool, blockhead) · sv beckasin (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · gl bobo (fool, blockhead) · ro becațină (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · fi taivaanvuohi (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · uk бека́с (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · he חרטומן (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · fi kurppa (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · lt tilvikas (bird of the family Scolopacidae) · pt bobo (fool, blockhead)
From Middle English snipe, snype (“a type of bird”), from Old Norse snípa, as in mýrisnípa (“moor snipe”). Akin to Norwegian snipe.
* The verb originated in the 1770s among soldiers in British India, where a hunter skilled enough to kill the elusive bird was dubbed a sniper. The term sniper was first attested in 1824, in the sense of sharpshooter.
Meanings
(intransitive) To hunt snipe.
The pleasures of Bay bird shooting should not be spoken of in the same sentence with cocking or sniping. 1883, Charles Hallock, The Sportsman's Gazetteer and General Guide: The Game Animals, Bird and Fishes of North America; Their Habits and Various Methods of Capture, revised edition:
(intransitive) To shoot at individuals from a concealed place.
(broadly, intransitive) To shoot with a sniper rifle.
(transitive) To watch a timed online auction and place a winning bid against (the current high bidder) at the last possible moment.
The successful sniper makes one bid only—and makes it count. Sniping happens on eBay because the end time of each auction is rigidly enforced. If you know that an auction ends at 12:01:30, you can time your snipe to hit at 12:01:29, leaving no time for any other bidders to trump your bid. 2008, Michael Miller, Absolute Beginner's Guide to EBay, Que Publishing, →ISBN, page 68:
Tip: Adding a few cents to your maximum bid is particularly effective when you're sniping. (..) Last-second bidding is called sniping, and 15 percent of all eBay auctions are won within the last minute. 2005, Nancy Conner, eBay: The Missing Manual: The Missing Manual, O'Reilly Media, Inc., →ISBN, page 126:
I am the type who is liable to snipe you
With two seconds left to go, whoa. 2003, "Weird Al" Yankovic, eBay (song)
Sniping is the process of placing bids in the closing minutes or seconds of an auction. Snipers do this to avoid bidding wars that escalate the bids to more than they want to pay. 2007, Entrepreneur Press, Start Your Own Business on eBay: Your Step-By-Step Guide to Success, Entrepreneur Press, →ISBN, page 64:
(transitive) To nose (a log) to make it drag or slip easily in skidding.
(slang) To score a goal.
To move the ball quickly in a different direction.
The breakthrough duly arrived after 35 minutes, an absolute beauty of a team goal scored by Lozano. First Khedira was robbed deep in the Mexico half. Hernández sniped away from Jérôme Boateng and Mats Hummels. A flurry of skimmed passes across the wide-open spaces of the Germany defence left Lozano in space in the area. With the stadium howling for him to shoot he cut inside Özil, who had tracked back to right-back, and buried the ball past Neuer. 2018 June 17, Barney Ronay, “Mexico’s Hirving Lozano stuns world champions Germany for brilliant win”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 05 Aug 2019:
bg стрелям от засада (shoot at individuals from a concealed place) · ro trage din ascunziș (shoot at individuals from a concealed place) · th ซุ่มยิง (shoot at individuals from a concealed place) · ja 狙撃する (shoot at individuals from a concealed place) · th ซุ่มยิง (shoot with a sniper rifle) · ja 狙撃する (shoot with a sniper rifle)
An end of a log remaining after timber has been cut away.
An animated promotional logo during a television show.
A strip of copy announcing some late breaking news or item of interest, typically placed in a print advertisement in such a way that it stands out from the ad.
A bottle of wine measuring 0.1875 liters, one fourth the volume of a standard bottle; a quarter bottle or piccolo.
Either from sneap or a figurative development from Etymology 1.
Meanings
A sharp, clever answer; sarcasm.
A note or sticker attached to an existing poster to provide further information (e.g. an event is sold out, political criticism, etc.).
[R]egular campaign posters are easily adapted to the student market by sniping them. […] The student snipe should say something like, "FOR STUDENTS ONLY: 5 EVENTS FOR AS LITTLE AS $20.00!" 1983, Joseph V. Melillo, Market the Arts!:
Either from sneap or a figurative development from Etymology 1.
Meanings
(intransitive) To make malicious, underhand remarks or attacks.
After the president held a White House event announcing a shared venture, with up to $500 billion of funding[…] Elon Musk sniped on X that the money for the venture wasn’t really there. 2025 January 25, Ross Douthat, “In the Court of King Trump”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
Capitalizing on the restive mood, Mr. Farage, the U.K. Independence Party leader, took out an advertisement in The Daily Telegraph this week inviting unhappy Tories to defect. In it Mr. Farage sniped that the Cameron government — made up disproportionately of career politicians who graduated from Eton and Oxbridge — was “run by a bunch of college kids, none of whom have ever had a proper job in their lives.” 2013 May 23, Sarah Lyall, “British Leader’s Liberal Turn Sets Off a Rebellion in His Party”, in New York Times, retrieved 29 May 2013:
(transitive) To attach a note or sticker to (an existing poster) to provide further information, political criticism, etc.
Campus newspaper advertising rates are inexpensive, flyers can be simple because the ticket-price message is strong, and regular campaign posters are easily adapted to the student market by sniping them. 1983, Joseph V. Melillo, Market the Arts!:
At the time, a poster cost more to snipe than to print. The company quoted us $1.50 per poster, and made such a point of guaranteeing coverage, I decided to covertly follow one of their crews around one night to see for myself. 2018, Avram Finkelstein, After Silence: A History of AIDS Through Its Images, page 42: