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Tiff
Definitions
- 1 Acronym of tagged image file format. abbreviation, acronym, alt-of
- 2 A diminutive of the female given name Tiffany.
- 1 A (generally small) argument or disagreement; a petty quarrel, a spat. informal
"My Lord and I have had another little—Tiff, ſhall I call it? It came not up to a quarrel. Married people vvould have enough to do, if they vvere to trouble their friends every time they miſunderſtood one another."
- 2 Alternative letter-case form of TIFF (acronym of tagged image file format). alt-of, informal
- 3 A small draught or sip of liquor (especially diluted or poor quality liquor) or punch. archaic, countable, informal, obsolete, slang
"Come, Captain, let not your noble Courage be caſt dovvn; vvhat ſay you to a Glaſs of vvhite VVine, or a Tiff of Punch, by VVay of VVhet?"
- 4 The way in which one's body or hair is decked out or dressed. archaic, informal, obsolete, rare, slang
"Did you mark the beau Tiff of his VVig, vvhat a deal of Pains he took to toſs it back, vvhen the very VVeight thereof vvas like to dravv him from his Seat?"
- 5 An image stored in the TIFF format.
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- 6 Alternative form of TIFF. alt-of, alternative
- 7 a quarrel about petty points wordnet
- 8 A brief outburst or period of bad temper; a snit; also (rare) any brief outburst (for example, of laughter). archaic, informal
"[A]s if / Returning homevvards in a furious Tiff; / Your Hoſt declares, he's ſorry at his Heart, / And humbly acts the penitential Part."
- 9 Liquor, especially diluted or poor quality liquor. archaic, informal, obsolete, slang, uncountable
"By dint of drinking acid tiff, as above mentioned, and smoking segars, in which I am no novice, my Public are to be informed, that I gradually drank and smoked myself into a certain degree of acquaintance with un homme comme il faut [a proper man], one of the few fine old specimens of nobility who are still to be found in France; […]"
- 10 A file using TIFF file format
- 1 To be involved in a (generally small) argument or disagreement; to squabble. informal, intransitive
"I very much indeed approve / Of maidens moderating love / Until they've twenty pounds; / […] / Until the twenty pounds were safe, / She tiff'd at Tim, she ran from Ralph, / Squire nodded … deuce a curtsy!"
- 2 Synonym of tiffin (“to eat a (light) midday meal or snack; to have lunch, to lunch”). British, India, informal, intransitive
"Besides that one to which the permanent residence was attached, Mr. Augustus had several outlaying factories, which he visited from time to time, to superintend the manufacture of his indigo; at all of these he had little bungalows, or temporary abodes, where we tiffed and passed the heat of the day."
- 3 To drink (liquor), especially slowly or in small amounts; to sip. archaic, informal, obsolete, slang, transitive
"Nor did the Doctor fail to go / To the bright region of the Row; / There tiff'd his punch and talk'd and smok'd, / Was sometimes grave and sometimes jok'd; […]"
- 4 To deck out or dress (someone or oneself, or their body or hair). archaic, informal, obsolete, reflexive, slang, transitive
"Is the Miſs under a force vvhen ſhe culls among her trinkets vvith curious toil to tiff herſelf out in the most engaging manner, or teazes pappa for money to buy a nevv-faſhioned ſilk?"
- 5 To deck out or dress one's body or hair. archaic, informal, intransitive, obsolete, slang
"I never pin up my Hair vvith Proſe. I fancy ones Hair vvou'd not curl if it vvere pinn'd up vvith Proſe. […] Ay, poor Mincing tift and tift all the morning."
Etymology
The 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.
The 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.
See TIFF.
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.
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). The noun is derived from the verb. cognates * Dutch tippen (“to clip the points or ends of the hair”) * English tip (noun) * Middle High German zipfen (“to bob; to flutter; to frisk, prance, skip; to sashay”) * Old Norse tippa (“point, tip”)
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). The noun is derived from the verb. cognates * Dutch tippen (“to clip the points or ends of the hair”) * English tip (noun) * Middle High German zipfen (“to bob; to flutter; to frisk, prance, skip; to sashay”) * Old Norse tippa (“point, tip”)
Shortened from Tiffany.
See also for "tiff"
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