kiss

When a person’s lips come together to express affection or respect for another person, this results in a kiss. This word can be used as a verb or as a noun.

She’s kissing him on the cheek. (verb)  She’s giving him a kiss. (noun)
They’re kissing each other on the lips.
He’s kissing her hand.

In these sentences, the word "kiss" is a noun:

• Give your grandmother a kiss goodbye.
• The wedding ceremony ended with a kiss.
• The actress blew kisses to her admirers.

In the next set of sentences, the word "kiss" is a verb. The "ed" ending for the past tense or past participle for "kiss" makes a "t" sound:

• John kissed his wife goodbye.
• Diane kissed her children goodnight.
• George is 23 years old and he has never kissed a girl before.

There are a few expressions that use the word "kiss."

• No one in the office likes Alice because she always kisses up to the boss. (kiss up to = to complement or flatter someone excessively for the purpose of gaining an advantage)
• You can kiss your promotion goodbye if you don’t do what the president of the company asks you to do. (kiss goodbye = to abandon; lose an opportunity)
• An early frost was the kiss of death for our tomato plants. (kiss of death = an event or signal that something is going to end or die.)

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This page was first published on September 16, 2012. It was updated on April 11, 2015.