To stroke or touch with one's tongue
“She'd lick the soup plate clean of everything except the peas and carrots, which she left in separate neat piles on either side of the dish.”
To flicker or ripple over something
“Hap had left some sticks of wood near the fire. I added them to the coals. I sat and watched the fire lick along them.”
To burn by coming or bringing into contact with flames or fire
“When he returned, he saw the flames begin to lick the side of the car where his entrance was.”
To be victorious over
“I hope that the brevity of this war does not convince us that we can lick anybody on the block.”
To overcome (a problem, person or challenge) decisively
“Well, I'm sure with counseling and stuff, you're going to lick this.”
To strike or hit repeatedly
“My intentions toward that lady are honorable, and I'll lick any man who says that isn't so!”
To make less powerful or intense, thereby easier to control
To prevent (someone) from achieving an aim
To make moist or moister
To overpower or defeat thoroughly in a physical or metaphorical sense
To find an answer or solution to a problem or question
To sample the flavor of something orally
Plural for a stroke or touch with one's tongue
“She gives my cheek a slobbery lick. I hold her muzzle and shower it with little kisses as if she were a baby.”
Plural for a small amount of something, especially a light coating or layer (such as of paint)
“Recycled jars need only a lick of paint to make them look fabulous.”
Plural for the smallest amount, part or particle imaginable
“Their people have fancy college degrees but not one lick of common sense.”
Plural for the speed at which one is moving or acting
“Then he slid the Winchester into its boot, mounted the horse and set off at a fast lick towards the river.”
Plural for a hard strike or hit
“The severity of this blow was much beyond that which would be inflicted by a lick with the fist.”
Plural for a person's manner of walking or running
Plural for an attempt to do or achieve something
Related Words and Phrases
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