lick and a promise
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
A superficial or cursory effort
Literally: a quick lick and a promise
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
She gave the cleaning a lick and a promise before the guests arrived
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “lick and a promise” mean?
A superficial or cursory effort Literally: a quick lick and a promise
Is “lick and a promise” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.