One quick closing of a pair of scissors. The blades bite once, a small piece comes away, and there is a short sharp sound. Everything else the word does grows out of that single short cut: the cut itself, the bit that falls off, and the idea of taking a little off something that is too long.
From the word’s history
The supplied source gives snip as a borrowing from Dutch or Low German snippen, described as imitative in origin — the word copies the sound of the cut. That fits the modern core: short, quick, audible.
packet 裡的來源說 snip 借自荷蘭語或低地德語的 snippen，而且是模仿聲音造出來的字。也就是說，它先是一個聲音，才變成一個動作。這正好對上今天的核心畫面：短、快、聽得見。
Wiktionary entry supplied in this packet (source_ref kaikki:3f6f69a190036ae4:1170076786): "From Dutch snippen or Low German snippen, of imitative origin."
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