tick

CEFRB1

/tɪk/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A small creature that feeds on the blood of animals or people.

  2. 02

    verb

    To make a short repeated clicking sound.

Examples

  • "Mister"ing a tick? You're a funny kid.

  • I just can't work out what makes Tom tick.

At a glance

Sits at B1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. A mark on any scale of measurement; a unit of measurement.

  2. A relatively quiet but sharp sound generally made repeatedly by moving machinery.

  3. A tiny woodland arachnid of the suborder Ixodida.

More examples

In context

  • I like to take things apart to see what makes them tick.

  • At midday, the long bond is up a tick.

  • The steady tick of the clock provided a comforting background for the conversation.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The only sound in the quiet library was the steady blank of the old wall clock.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

From Middle English tyke, teke, from Old English ticia (“parasitic animal, tick”), from Proto-West Germanic *tīkō, compare Dutch teek, German Zecke.