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🤫 To walk quietly 🦶 Front of foot 🦶 On your toes
tiptoe

tiptoe

15 2.4
The front part of the foot you use when you lift your heels to reach something high or move quietly
  • noun
  • /ˈtɪpˌtoʊ/
translation icon : punta del pie
  • Lucy would come to the top of the stairs on her tiptoes and listen.
  • walk on tiptoes

Examples

  • Though she was a tall girl, she had to stand on tiptoe to plant a kiss on his cheek.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Then he went up on his tiptoes and kissed me goodbye.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • People are pushing, standing on tiptoe, to get a better look.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • I kept to one side, on tiptoe, glad of my last summer's practice in wearing high heels.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • I mean, do you have to stand on your tiptoes to kiss her?

    Coherence (2013)

  • Emma suddenly went up on tiptoes, peering over the heads of the men.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • Miriam raised herself on tiptoes, looked around, shook her head, and went off in search.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Andrew stood on tiptoe, his nose almost touching the glossy icing of a chocolate cake.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • I dared to give him a chaste good-night kiss, on tiptoe, and he tightened his arm around me.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • To reach the top shelf, she stood on her tiptoes, stretching her arms high.

Synonyms

forefoot
vstiptoe
  • Specialized
2 3.5

The front part of the human foot that includes the toes and the ball

is the front part used for quiet walking or reaching by raising the heels

Idioms

to tiptoe through a minefield
  • Informal
8.8

To act very carefully in a difficult situation to avoid mistakes or offend people

Surface Forms

tiptoe singular
tiptoes plural

Morphology

tiptoe = tip + toe (transparent) = tip + toe

The noun denotes the tip of the toe (tips of the toes), a direct compound of 'tip' + 'toe'.

Etymology

Tiptoe (or tiptoes for the plural) mixes tip ('point') and toe ('front of the foot'), meaning the tip part of your foot. So being on your tiptoe means raising your heels to reach higher or to move softly and quietly.