I. pip 1 /pɪp/ BrE AmE noun [countable] British English
[ Sense 1: Date: 1700-1800 ; Origin: pippin ]
[ Sense 2: Date: 1900-2000 ; Origin: From the sound ]
[ Sense 3: Date: 1900-2000 ; Origin: pip ' mark on a playing card showing its value ' ]
1 . a small seed from a fruit such as an apple or orange:
an apple pip
Have these oranges got pips in?
2 . a high note that is part of a series of short sounds, used for example on the radio to show the time, or on a public telephone line to show that your money has almost finished SYN beep American English :
The pips are going so I’d better say goodbye.
3 . old-fashioned one of the stars on the shoulders of the coats of army officers that shows their rank
II. pip 2 BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle pipped , present participle pipping ) [transitive] British English informal
1 . pip somebody at the post to beat someone at the last moment in a race, competition etc, when they were expecting to win:
The Maclaren team were narrowly pipped at the post by Ferrari.
2 . to beat someone in a race, competition etc, by only a small amount
pip somebody to/for something
Jackson just pipped him for the gold.