Kiss

A kiss is the act of pressing one's lips against the lips or other body parts of another person or of an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, affection, respect, greeting, friendship and good luck, among many others. In some situations a kiss is a ritual, formal or symbolic gesture indicating devotion, respect or greeting, as in the case of spouses kissing at the conclusion of a wedding ceremony or national leaders kissing each other in greeting, and in many other situations.

Depending on the culture, relationship and context, a person may kiss another on their lips, cheek, head, hand and each of these gestures may carry a different social significance. The word came from Old English cyssan (“to kiss”), in turn from coss (“a kiss”).