to give an extra amount of money for a service, such as to a waiter, in appreciation of his efforts. Origins: Years ago, waiters and some others hoping for
a little extra money, used to carry around a
small box labelled "To Improve Promptness", and soon the initials were shortened to form the single word "tip". Nowadays, it is customary in many places to give
a tip which is one tenth of the total bill.
The boy from
the lobby took our bags to our room, and from the way he kept standing there in the
doorway with his hand slightly out, palm up, you could tell he was hoping for
a tip.