Suppose you've been browsing prepubescent meme forums in the past few months. In that case, you might have seen an influx of drip memes, where a character gets a pair of giant Nike dunks slapped onto them, with various replies hailing the edited image as a "drippy" masterpiece. But having drip and being dripped out or drippy have a history that spans far beyond memes.

What Does 'Drip' Mean, And Where Does The Word Come From?

Historically speaking, the word "drip" is a cousin to the word "drop," meaning water droplets or "to fall." But sometime in the '90s and 2000s, the term "drip" began to appear in various rap songs. Rappers Sauce Walka and Gunna have both laid claims to the popularization of the word "drip," but others would argue that it was The Migos and their huge hit "Ric Flair Drip."

How Did The Word 'Drip' Become Popular In Memes?

In the late 2010s, "drip" became almost inescapable in memes, starting with the ever-popular catchphrase, Respect the drip, Karen. Drip isn't always obvious or easily recognizable by the wider, less enlightened masses. So a sound that references the internet's favorite bogeyman, the Karen, was bound to go viral. Especially when it is combined with some of the most cryptically drippy outfits known to man.

@nicksdeathpit i just put the gloves on my feet because my toes are for premium snapchat ONLY #fyp ♬ original sound – andrew

@anwar

Respect the drip 💧

♬ original sound – andrew

Another early variant of the drip memes was Goku Drip and Among Drip, where both characters were edited to be dripped out in Supreme and Nike dunks, and used as a jumpscare in bait-and-switch style videos. As they say, "the drip is immaculate."

How Can You Use 'Drip' In A Sentence?

You can use the word drip in the same way you might use swag; to signify that your outfit is looking good, luxurious, and well styled. You could use drip in conjunction with the word "ice," to say that you have that ice on you, and it's drippy. You could also go old school and use drip the way people did 50 years ago, to call someone a dim-witted loser. Here are some examples:

• "The drip is immaculate bro"
• "I got drip-drip-drip-drip-drippy-drop"

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For the full history of "drip," be sure to check out our entry on the slang term here for even more information.