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Definition of "tick" []

  • A light, sharp, clicking sound made repeatedly by a machine, such as a clock. (noun)
  • Chiefly British A moment. (noun)
  • A light mark used to check off or call attention to an item. (noun)
  • Informal A unit on a scale; a degree: when interest rates move up a tick. (noun)
  • To emit recurring clicking sounds: as the clock ticked. (verb-intransitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "tick" in a sentence
  • "The house rang with the wreak and wrack of wood, and that _tick tick tick_ of the heating system."
  • "Every creature on the planet has it's place in nature, but the tick is an abomination."
  • "Alas, the mystery of what makes people tick is inherently difficult to investigate in a test tube."