Link Centre Dictionary

kipper

kip·per

UK/ˈkɪpə(ɹ)/ US/ˈkɪpɜr/ uncommon informal slang uk

noun

Origin

From Old English cypera (“male salmon”), perhaps related to Old English coper (“reddish-brown metal”) (see copper), on resemblance of color. Another theory connects it to kip (“sharp, hooked lower jaw of the male salmon in breeding season”), from Middle English kippen (“to seize, snatch”), but OED doubts this.

Phrases

  • dead as a kipper
  • done up like a kipper
  • flip the kipper
  • kipper tie
  • kipper time
  • stitched up like a kipper

Related words

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.