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⇱ tick - WordReference.com Dictionary of English

tick

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UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈtɪk/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/tɪk/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(tik)


WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
tick1 /tɪk/USA pronunciation   n. [countable]
  1. a slight, sharp click or beat, as of a clock.
  2. British Termsa moment or instant:I'll be back in a tick.
  3. Electronics, a small dot, mark, or electronic signal used to mark off an item on a list or call attention to something.

v. 
  1. to make the sound of a tick, like that of a clock:[no object]The clock ticked loudly.
  2. (of time) to pass, as marked by or as if marked by the ticks of a clock:[no object]The hours ticked by.
  3. to sound or announce by a tick or ticks:[~ + object]The clock ticked the minutes.
  4. to mark with a tick;
    check:[~ (+ off) + object]to tick off the items.
  5. tick off, [Slang.]to make angry: [~ + object + off]She really ticked me off.[~ + off + object]He managed to tick off everyone in the office.
Idioms
  1. Idioms what makes one tick, one's basic motives, needs, etc.:Once we discover what makes him tick we'll find a way to get him to agree with us.


tick2 /tɪk/USA pronunciation   n. [countable]
  1. Invertebratesa bloodsucking insectlike creature, related to but larger than a mite:Deer ticks carry Lyme disease.

tick3 /tɪk/USA pronunciation   n. [countable]
  1. the cloth case of a mattress, pillow, etc., containing hair, feathers, or the like.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
tick1  (tik),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. a slight, sharp, recurring click, tap, or beat, as of a clock.
  2. British Terms[Chiefly Brit. Informal.]a moment or instant.
  3. Electronics, a small dot, mark, check, or electronic signal, as used to mark off an item on a list, serve as a reminder, or call attention to something.
  4. [Stock Exchange.]
    • a movement in the price of a stock, bond, or option.
    • the smallest possible tick on a given exchange.
  5. Sport[Manège.]a jumping fault consisting of a light touch of a fence with one or more feet.
  6. Veterinary Diseasesa small contrasting spot of color on the coat of a mammal or the feathers of a bird.

v.i. 
  1. to emit or produce a tick, like that of a clock.
  2. to pass as with ticks of a clock:The hours ticked by.

v.t. 
  1. to sound or announce by a tick or ticks:The clock ticked the minutes.
  2. to mark with a tick or ticks;
    check (usually fol. by off );
    to tick off the items on the memo.
  3. tick off, [Slang.]
    • to make angry:His mistreatment of the animals really ticked me off.
    • British Terms[Chiefly Brit.]to scold severely:The manager will tick you off if you make another mistake.
  4. what makes one tick, the motive or explanation of one's behavior:The biographer failed to show what made Herbert Hoover tick.
  • 1400–50; late Middle English tek little touch; akin to Dutch tik a touch, pat, Norwegian tikka to touch or shove slightly. See tickle

tick2 (tik),USA pronunciation 
  1. Insectsany of numerous bloodsucking arachnids of the order Acarina, including the families Ixodidae and Argasidae, somewhat larger than the related mites and having a barbed proboscis for attachment to the skin of warm-blooded vertebrates: some ticks are vectors of disease.
  2. InsectsSee sheeptick. 
  • bef. 900; Middle English teke, tyke, Old English ticia (perh. spelling, spelled error for tiica (i.e. tīca) or ticca); akin to Low German tieke, German Zecke

tick3 (tik),USA pronunciation 
  1. the cloth case of a mattress, pillow, etc., containing hair, feathers, or the like.
  2. ticking. Also called bedtick. 
  • Greek thé̄kē case
  • late Middle English tikke, teke, tyke (cognate with Dutch tijk, German Zieche)

tick4 (tik),USA pronunciation 
  1. British Termsa score or account.
  2. Idioms on tick, on credit or trust:We bought our telly on tick.
  • short for ticket 1635–45

tick1,1 +n. 
    [Business.]
  1. Business
    • Businessa movement in the price of a stock, bond, or option.
    • Businessthe smallest possible tick on a given exchange.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
tick /tɪk/ n
  1. a recurrent metallic tapping or clicking sound, such as that made by a clock or watch
  2. Brit informal a moment or instant
  3. a mark (✓) or dash used to check off or indicate the correctness of something
  4. the smallest increment of a price fluctuation in a commodity exchange. Tick size is usually 0.01% of the nominal value of the trading unit
 vb
  1. to produce a recurrent tapping sound or indicate by such a sound: the clock ticked the minutes away
  2. when tr, often followed by off: to mark or check (something, such as a list) with a tick
  3. what makes someone tick ⇒ informal the basic drive or motivation of a person
Etymology: 13th Century: from Low German tikk touch; related to Old High German zekōn to pluck, Norwegian tikke to touch
tick /tɪk/ n
  1. any of various small parasitic arachnids of the families Ixodidae (hard ticks) and Argasidae (soft ticks), typically living on the skin of warm-blooded animals and feeding on the blood and tissues of their hosts: order Acarina (mites and ticks)
Etymology: Old English ticca; related to Middle High German zeche tick, Middle Irish dega stag beetle
tick /tɪk/ n
  1. Brit informal account or credit (esp in the phrase on tick)
Etymology: 17th Century: shortened from ticket
tick /tɪk/ n
  1. the strong covering of a pillow, mattress, etc
  2. informal
    short for ticking
Etymology: 15th Century: probably from Middle Dutch tīke; related to Old High German ziecha pillow cover, Latin tēca case, Greek thēkē
'tick' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Collocations: [look, check] for ticks after [camping, hiking], can you check by [back, hair] for ticks?, found a tick on my [arm, back], more...

🗣️Forum discussions with the word(s) "tick" in the title:

“tick box"?
[how to use smilies: tick, cross, warning]
a tick on the back
a tick younger
and for my next tick
at/on every tick of the clock
Awe swelled his words, made them tick smug and fat
check off the list/tick off the list?
check or tick (classroom English)
Clinging to me like a tick
Drip. Drop.Tick. Tock
dug in like a well-compensated tick
emotional tick
hang on a tick
How do you use "tick along" in a sentence?
I forget what, that just tick me off?
I wanna know how you tick
If you tick me off, I'll be nasty.
in the tick
It's a nervous tick [tic]
like an Alabama tick
Listen and tick the school words you (will) hear.
long limbs stretching further than the clock can tick
lull and tick
made him tick
make it tick
Make tick
Manifold-tick
Mr.Biden's tick upward
Play tick-box games?
more...

Look up "tick" at Merriam-Webster
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