Meaning & use
lip balm
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable or uncountable
A soft substance put on the lips to stop them becoming dry or sore.
Grammar: Can be countable (a lip balm) or uncountable (some lip balm).
Patterns
- apply lip balm
- wear lip balm
- a tube of lip balm
My lips are cracked, so I need some lip balm.
She always carries a lip balm in her pocket.
This lip balm has a nice strawberry smell.
Word forms
| plural | lip balms |
|---|
Common combinations
- apply lip balm
- Apply lip balm before you go out in the cold.
- moisturizing lip balm
- I use a moisturizing lip balm every night.
- tube of lip balm
- He bought a tube of lip balm at the pharmacy.
- lip balm with SPF
- In summer, use a lip balm with SPF.
Synonyms and how they differ
- lip salve
- A more old-fashioned or British term for the same product.
- chapstick
- A brand name often used informally in the US for any lip balm.
Commonly confused: lip balm or lip gloss?
lip balm vs lip gloss
Lip gloss is mainly for shine and color, while lip balm is mainly for moisturizing and healing.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence:
Choose one answer.
Lip balm is used on the lips to moisturize, so 'applied lip balm to his dry lips' is correct. Option An is wrong because lip balm is not mainly for shine; that's lip gloss. Option C is wrong because lip balm is not food. Option D is wrong because lip balm is not for hair.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “lip balm”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.