tippy-tap
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈtɪpitæp/
Forms: form: tippy-taps
form: tippy-tapping
form: tippy-tapped
form: tippy-tapped
form: tippy tap
Senses: examples: text: But to watch Errico tippy-tap into the same scenes that Kelly used to enter in a grandly aristocratic and delicious sweep; to hear Errico and co-star Randy Graff chirp drollery that Hepburn, Kelly and Celeste Holm used to fire off like Stinger missiles (jus hearing Hepburn say “Oh, goody” made a wonderful theatrical evening for me); and to listen to the nice Daniel McDonald (as C.K. Dexter Haven) and Errico sing “True Love” when that unconquerable love ballad had its numbers retired half a century ago by Crosby and Kelly – is to cry.
ref: 1998 June 4, Michael Kilian, “‘High Society II’ can’t bear original”, in The Sacramento Bee, volume 283, page F2:
text: At Rainbow Park Elementary in Opa-locka, fourth graders tippy-tap in front of a wall of mirrors on a dance floor that would be the envy of most professional studios.
ref: 2000 July 2, Gail Meadows, “Culture Class”, in The Miami Herald, 97th year, number 292, page 12M:
text: Alas, too often the Eagles wide receiver reacts as though he has been asked to dance. He tippy-taps in place, placid, compliant.
ref: 2000 September 19, Bill Lyon, “Eagles can’t catch the ball…”, in Lancaster New Era, 124th year, number 38,636, Lancaster, Pa., page C-6:
text: Wow, I could tippy-tap with excitement at the thought!
ref: 2023 February, PawPrints:
glosses: To tap dance, or imitate tap dancing.
examples: text: I have always envied the starch in their shirts and the clean fingers they use to tippy-tap their computers and develop weird schematics while their fake Rolex wristwatches glitter.
ref: 1997 August 3, Leonard Bishop, “Things to do on my return”, in The Manhattan Mercury, Manhattan, Kan., page D3:
text: He hands me one rod and grabs the person closest next to me—Wendy, in this case—and shoves the second rod in her hand as he gleefully tippy-taps his fingers on the knobs of this contraption box resting against his ample belly.
ref: 2002, Ron-Luc Nickell, Send in the Cones: The Cruise Ship Letters, Austin, Tex.: 10-4 Communications Press, published 2006, →ISBN, page 74:
text: Because swimming-hole water has substance: Pine needles tippy-tap your thighs, and tiny fish nip the hair on your legs.
ref: 2004 July 6, Bob Sipchen, “Will float for food”, in Los Angeles Times, page F5:
text: Frank Martin (Jason Statham) is sitting in a parking deck behind the wheel of his awesomely sweet, kick[buttocks] Audi A8 when this baby doll of a young lady with a bare midriff tippy-toes over and tippy-taps his window and goes, Help, help, my tire’s got a flat.
ref: 2005 September 9, Jordy “Ray” Purlky Jr., “A bald guy, babes, fast cars — what’s not to love here?”, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, volume 57, number 252, page H6:
text: We text, we tweet, we tippy-tap e-mails on our hand-held devices at length, but we rarely chat to each other about the weather, the political state of play, the latest TV sitcom or the outrageous price of housing/gasoline/food/ferry fares.
ref: 2011 April 9, Ian Haysom, “Here’s to a little chit-chat during surgery”, in Times Colonist, 153rd year, number 101, Victoria, B.C., page A14:
text: They’re happy when they can tippy-tap on their phones and order artisanal T-shirts from Etsy, so we’re getting out while we can.
ref: 2018 April 23, James Lileks, “Do we buy into the department stores’ end?”, in Star Tribune, volume XXXVII, number 19, page E3:
glosses: To tap lightly.
Related terms: tippy-tappy