# lip service

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/lip-service
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

Promising but empty talk; words without action or intention.

## Examples

- The manager paid lip service to our concerns.
- The company pays lip service to environmental issues but never actually recycles anything.
- Politicians often pay lip service to reform while quietly protecting the interests that fund their campaigns.

## Origin

First use appears c. 1590, in A Treatise against Witchcraft by Henry Holland. Compare earlier lip-labour.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.