What does "snipe" mean?
Any of various limicoline game birds of the genera Gallinago, Lymnocryptes and Coenocorypha in the family Scolopacidae, having a long, slender, nearly straight beak.
Snipe
/snaɪp/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Any of various limicoline game birds of the genera Gallinago, Lymnocryptes and Coenocorypha in the family Scolopacidae, having a long, slender, nearly straight beak.
- Grammar: snipe is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: aim at, ambush shot, assail, assault.
- Useful contrasts: attack openly, confront openly, defend.
- Usage evidence: Come with me to the hill, I'll show you a good place to snipe from.
How to use "snipe"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "snipe" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "snipe" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "snipe" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "snipe" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "snipe" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "aim at" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "snipe", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any of various limicoline game birds of the genera Gallinago, Lymnocryptes and Coenocorypha in the family Scolopacidae, having a long, slender, nearly straight beak.
- 2 A cigarette butt. slang
- 3 A sharp, clever answer; sarcasm.
- 4 a gunshot from a concealed location wordnet
- 5 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."
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 An end of a log remaining after timber has been cut away.
- 7 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!""
- 8 Old or New World straight-billed game bird of the sandpiper family; of marshy areas; similar to the woodcocks wordnet
- 9 A shot fired from a concealed place.
- 10 An animated promotional logo during a television show.
- 11 A member of the engineering department on a ship. slang
- 12 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.
- 13 A goal. slang
- 14 A bottle of wine measuring 0.1875 liters, one fourth the volume of a standard bottle; a quarter bottle or piccolo.
Verb
- 1 To hunt snipe. intransitive
"The pleasures of Bay bird shooting should not be spoken of in the same sentence with cocking or sniping."
- 2 To make malicious, underhand remarks or attacks. intransitive
"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.”"
- 3 attack in speech or writing wordnet
- 4 To shoot at individuals from a concealed place. intransitive
- 5 To attach a note or sticker to (an existing poster) to provide further information, political criticism, etc. transitive
"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."
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 aim and shoot with great precision wordnet
- 7 To shoot with a sniper rifle. broadly, intransitive
- 8 hunt or shoot snipe wordnet
- 9 To watch a timed online auction and place a winning bid against (the current high bidder) at the last possible moment. transitive
"I am the type who is liable to snipe you With two seconds left to go, whoa."
- 10 To nose (a log) to make it drag or slip easily in skidding. transitive
- 11 To score a goal. slang
- 12 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."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Come with me to the hill, I'll show you a good place to snipe from."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "snipe"?
Common synonyms include: aim at, ambush shot, assail, assault, attack, attack.
How do you use "snipe" in a sentence?
Come with me to the hill, I'll show you a good place to snipe from.
How do you pronounce "snipe"?
Pronounced /snaɪp/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
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 snipe was dubbed a "sniper". The term sniper was first attested in 1824 in the sense of the word "sharpshooter".
Etymology 2
Probably from snip or a cognate
Etymology 3
Either from sneap or a figurative development from Etymology 1.