Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Language: Old English
Origin: liccian

lick

1 verb
     
lick1 S3
1

tongue

[transitive]HB to move your tongue across the surface of something in order to eat it, wet it, clean it etc:
The dog jumped up and licked her face.
lick something ↔ up
A cat licked up the drops spilt on the floor.
lick something off something
He licked the drops off his upper lip.
2

sport

[transitive] informal to defeat an opponent:
I bet we could lick the best teams in Georgia.
3

flames/waves

[intransitive and transitive] literary if flames or waves lick something, they touch it again and again with quick movements
lick at/against
Soon the flames were licking at the curtains.
4

have (got) something licked

informal to have succeeded in dealing with a difficult problem:
Just when you think you've got it licked, it comes back.
5

lick your lips

also lick your chops American English to feel eager and excited because you are expecting to get something good:
Scottish rugby fans are licking their lips in anticipation.
6

lick your wounds

to quietly think about the defeat or disappointment you have just suffered
7

lick somebody's boots

to obey someone completely because you are afraid of them or want to please them

➔ knock/lick somebody/something into shape

at shape1 (3)
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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