What it means
A sharp way to tell someone to stop talking right now. It paints this cartoon little image of zipping their mouth shut, so it lands punchier than shush and a lot ruder than be quiet. You hear it in bickering, schoolyard banter, family nagging, and mate-on-mate shutdowns when someone's waffling, mouthing off, or getting too cheeky. Also shows up as zip your lip.
Usage examples
"I started explaining crypto down the pub and my mate goes, Zip it, you sound like a broken satnav. Barman just smirked and nicked my pint."
"I started explaining the new crypto wallet to the lads down at the King's Head in Camden, and my mate Dave goes zip it Steve, you sound like a broken satnav on a bad data plan, the barman just smirked and reached for my pint to top it up at the same time."
"The Year Six teacher in the village school in Hampshire has perfected the calm zip it gesture across the lips at full assembly, the whole hall goes quiet within four seconds flat, the head teacher steals the move regularly for the staff meeting, and the new student teacher has been practising on her cat at home in the evening."
"Oi, zip it for a sec, I'm trying to hear what the driver just said and you're running your mouth like a dodgy podcast."
"My sister kept spoiling the ending, so I hit her with a zip it and Mum gave me that don't-push-it stare from across the table."
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Where it comes from
It comes from the image of pulling a zipper shut, with zip already used in English as a quick sound word for that motion. The phrase shows up in American English by the mid 1900s and got big in kids' talk, classrooms, and everyday arguments before spreading more widely across the English-speaking world.
Other ways to say it
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