pin

CEFRA2

/ˈpɪn/

noun · verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    A thin sharp piece of metal used to hold things together.

  2. 02

    verb

    To fasten something with a pin or hold it firmly.

Examples

  • He who steals a pin will steal an ox.

  • Investigators are trying to pin down the cause of today's fire.

At a glance

Sits at A2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. A cylinder often of wood or metal used to fasten or as a bearing between two parts.

  2. A small nail with a head and a sharp point.

  3. A needle without an eye (usually) made of drawn-out steel wire with one end sharpened and the other flattened or rounded into a head, used for fastening.

More examples

In context

  • The iron is fitted with a three-pin plug.

  • I'm not so good on my pins these days.

  • Pull the pin out of the grenade before throwing it at the enemy.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

She used a safety blank to fasten the loose strap on her bag tightly.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

From Middle English pinne, from Old English pinn (“pin, peg, bolt”), from Proto-Germanic *pinnaz, *pinnō, *pint- (“protruding point, peak, peg, pin, nail”), from Proto-Indo-European *bend- (“protruding object, pointed peg, nail, edge”). Related to pen (“enclosure”). Cognate with Dutch pin (“peg, pin”), Low German pin, pinne (“pin, point, nail, peg”), German Pinn, Pinne (“pin, tack, peg”), Bavarian Pfonzer, Pfunzer (“sharpened point”), Danish pind (“pin, pointed stick”), Norwegian pinn (“stick”), Swedish pinne (“peg, rod, stick”), Icelandic pinni (“pin”). More at pintle. No relation to classical Latin pinna (“fin, flipper, wing-like appendage, wing, feather”), which was extended to mean "rid...