Standard Lemma guide

tic

noun · verb · 11 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Australian, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation: /tɪk/
  • California: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Queensland Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • New-Zealand: /tək/
  • rhymes with -ɪk
  • homophone: tick
  • CMU ARPABET: T IH1 K Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A sudden, nonrhythmic motor movement or vocalization.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: medicine, neurology, neuroscience, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Something that is done or produced habitually or characteristically.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: broadly

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Clipping of ticket.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, informal

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

Initialism of tourist information centre.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

Initialism of tenancy in common.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable

Topics: law

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

Initialism of total invested capital.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable

Topics: business, finance

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

Initialism of offence to be taken into consideration.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: UK, abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism

Qualifier: criminal law

Topics: government, law-enforcement

Examples

  • TICs must be admitted by a defendant in addition to the crimes for which they have been convicted.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

Initialism of translocon on inner chloroplast membrane.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable

Topics: biology, cytology, medicine, natural-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

noun

Meaning 9

Initialism of thermal imaging camera.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

verb

Meaning 10

To exhibit a tic; to undergo a sudden, semi-voluntary muscle movement.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

noun

Meaning 11

a local and habitual twitching especially in the face

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: twitch, twitching, vellication

History

Etymology

Borrowed from French tic.

Clipping of ticket.

Across languages

Translations

29 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: тик (tik) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Catalan: tic — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Chinese Mandarin: 抽搐 (chōuchù) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Czech: tik — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Dutch: tic — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Esperanto: tiko — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Finnish: nykimisoire — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • French: tic — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • German: Tic — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • German: Zucken — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • German: nervöses Zucken — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Japanese: チック (chikku) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Korean: 틱 (tik) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Macedonian: тик (tik) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Polish: tik — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Portuguese: tique — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Portuguese: cacoete — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Romanian: tic — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Russian: тик (tik) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Russian: не́рвный тик (nérvnyj tik) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Russian: подёргивание (podjórgivanije) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Spanish: tic — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Spanish: chiripiorca — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Swedish: ryckning — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Swedish: tic — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Urdu: حرکی (harki) — local and habitual convulsive motion
  • Esperanto: tiki — to undergo a muscle movement
  • Māori: timu — to undergo a muscle movement
  • Māori: tumu — to undergo a muscle movement