lisped; lisping; lisps
1
: to pronounce the sibilants \s\ and \z\ imperfectly especially by turning them into \th\ and \t͟h\
2
: to speak falteringly, childishly, or with a lisp
: to utter falteringly or with a lisp
lisper
noun
1
: a speech defect or affectation characterized by lisping
2
: a sound resembling a lisp
: a computer programming language that is designed for easy manipulation of symbols that represent data and instructions and is used extensively for work in artificial intelligence
Examples of lisp in a Sentence
Noun (1)
He spoke with a lisp.
Recent Examples on the Web
Manuel Betancourt, Vulture, 7 Feb. 2024
Max Cadillac aces his biggest Moonlight role to date as Roger’s lisping common-law assistant Carmen Ghia.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2019
Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2024
Nasrallah, who often invoked both God and guns with a distinctive lisp, wore a black turban signifying his descent from the Prophet Muhammad.
—Robin Wright, The New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for lisp 
Verb
But there are enough hints that his parlor tricks are wearing thin on some (Lee, who lisps and mocks him to Albert, in particular).
—Manuel Betancourt, Vulture, 7 Feb. 2024
Max Cadillac aces his biggest Moonlight role to date as Roger’s lisping common-law assistant Carmen Ghia.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2019
Noun
Hezbollah played on the popularity of Nasrallah, a skilled orator who spoke with a lisp and would crack the occasional joke and use slang.
—Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2024
Nasrallah, who often invoked both God and guns with a distinctive lisp, wore a black turban signifying his descent from the Prophet Muhammad.
—Robin Wright, The New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for lisp
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lisp.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near lisp
Cite this Entry
“Lisp.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lisp. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
lisp
1 of 2 verb
: to pronounce the sounds \s\ and \z\ in an imperfect way by giving them the sounds of \th\ and \t͟h\
lisper
noun
lisp
2 of 2 noun
: the act or habit of lisping
Medical Definition
lisp
1 of 2 intransitive verb1
: to pronounce the sibilants \s\ and \z\ imperfectly especially by giving them the sounds \th\ and \t͟h\
2
: to speak with a lisp
: to utter with a lisp
lisp
2 of 2 noun
: a speech defect or affectation characterized by lisping
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