Talk:pipe

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pipe

Rfd-redundant X 2:

1. To decorate a cake using a pastry bag.
2. To dab away moisture from.

I have tried to create a figurative sense that includes the "dab" sense. I am more confident that the "pastry bag" sense is included in "decorate with piping", which includes textiles and icing. DCDuring TALK 11:37, 23 August 2010 (UTC)

Probably delete the cake-specific sense but give "decorate with piping" a few diverse examples/citations. Equinox ◑ 12:08, 23 August 2010 (UTC)

Deleted second cake sense as redundant; Kept dabbing sense as not covered by other senses. --EncycloPetey 18:56, 4 July 2011 (UTC)

Piped music

Muzak is sometimes described as "piped music" or "piped-in music", even though no pipes are involved. Does that mean we are missing a sense? Equinox ◑ 10:31, 23 August 2010 (UTC)

Possible missing slang: telephone

In CBS Radio Mystery Theater (episode "Sheer Terror"), somebody says they will "get on the pipe", evidently meaning the telephone. Equinox ◑ 13:10, 17 February 2019 (UTC)

 Done Equinox ◑ 19:54, 8 June 2022 (UTC)

Re: pipe = telephone

This usage is probably derived from the use (well into the mid-20th century) of speaking tubes on board ships. A tube would connect the bridge with the engine room: the officer of the watch could uncap the tube, blow down it to signal the person at the other end, then speak his instructions into the tube. "Get on the pipe" is a very naval metaphor. 68.71.23.38 17:58, 24 January 2025 (UTC)

"Pipe", verbal meaning #14

Probably dated, but convict slang for "watch out, somebody's coming" was "Pipe, pipe" (maybe confined to the U.K.). Can't think of a reference, but I've seen/heard this multiple times.

              David F. Hutchinson 68.71.23.38 01:53, 19 January 2025 (UTC)