Library / English Dictionary

PIN

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: pinned    , pinning   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A club-shaped wooden object used in bowling; set up in triangular groups of ten as the target

Synonyms:

bowling pin; pin

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

bowling equipment (equipment used in bowling)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pin"):

candlepin (a bowling pin that is thin by comparison with a tenpin)

duckpin (a bowling pin that is short and squat by comparison with a tenpin)

headpin; kingpin (the front bowling pin in the triangular arrangement of ten pins)

ninepin; skittle; skittle pin (a bowling pin of the type used in playing ninepins or (in England) skittles)

tenpin (one of the bottle-shaped pins used in bowling)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A holder attached to the gunwale of a boat that holds the oar in place and acts as a fulcrum for rowing

Synonyms:

oarlock; peg; pin; rowlock; thole; tholepin

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

holder (a holding device)

Holonyms ("pin" is a part of...):

dinghy; dory; rowboat (a small boat of shallow draft with cross thwarts for seats and rowlocks for oars with which it is propelled)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A small slender (often pointed) piece of wood or metal used to support or fasten or attach things

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

fastener; fastening; fixing; holdfast (restraint that attaches to something or holds something in place)

Meronyms (parts of "pin"):

pinhead (the head of a pin)

point (sharp end)

head (a projection out from one end)

shank; stem (cylinder forming a long narrow part of something)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pin"):

gudgeon pin; wrist pin (pin joining a piston to a connecting rod)

straight pin (pin consisting of a short straight stiff piece of wire with a pointed end; used to fasten pieces of cloth or paper together)

skewer (a long pin for holding meat in position while it is being roasted)

safety pin (a pin in the form of a clasp; has a guard so the point of the pin will not stick the user)

rivet (heavy pin having a head at one end and the other end being hammered flat after being passed through holes in the pieces that are fastened together)

nog; peg (a wooden pin pushed or driven into a surface)

linchpin; lynchpin (pin inserted through an axletree to hold a wheel on)

hatpin (a long sturdy pin used by women to secure a hat to their hair)

hairpin (a double pronged pin used to hold women's hair in place)

bitt pin (a pin through the bitthead to keep the mooring lines from slipping off)

barrette (a pin for holding women's hair in place)

Derivation:

pin (attach or fasten with pins)

pin (pierce with a pin)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A piece of jewelry that is pinned onto the wearer's garment

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

jewellery; jewelry (an adornment (as a bracelet or ring or necklace) made of precious metals and set with gems (or imitation gems))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pin"):

scarfpin; tie tack; tiepin (a pin used to hold the tie in place)

stickpin (a decorative pin that is worn in a necktie)

scatter pin (small pin usually worn in groups of two or more)

breastpin; broach; brooch (a decorative pin worn by women)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Flagpole used to mark the position of the hole on a golf green

Synonyms:

flag; pin

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

golf equipment (sports equipment used in playing golf)

Sense 6

Meaning:

Cylindrical tumblers consisting of two parts that are held in place by springs; when they are aligned with a key the bolt can be thrown

Synonyms:

pin; pin tumbler

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

tumbler (a movable obstruction in a lock that must be adjusted to a given position (as by a key) before the bolt can be thrown)

Holonyms ("pin" is a part of...):

cylinder lock (a lock in which a cylinder rotates to move a bolt; tumblers are pins; inserting the key lifts and aligns the pins to free the cylinder to rotate)

Sense 7

Meaning:

Axis consisting of a short shaft that supports something that turns

Synonyms:

pin; pivot

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

axis; axis of rotation (the center around which something rotates)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pin"):

fulcrum (the pivot about which a lever turns)

pintle (a pin or bolt forming the pivot of a hinge)

Sense 8

Meaning:

Informal terms for the leg

Example:

fever left him weak on his sticks

Synonyms:

peg; pin; stick

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

leg (a human limb; commonly used to refer to a whole limb but technically only the part of the limb between the knee and ankle)

Sense 9

Meaning:

A number you choose and use to gain access to various accounts

Synonyms:

personal identification number; PIN; PIN number

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("PIN" is a kind of...):

number (a numeral or string of numerals that is used for identification and may be attached to accounts, memberships, etc.)

Sense 10

Meaning:

Small markers inserted into a surface to mark scores or define locations etc.

Synonyms:

peg; pin

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

mark; marker; marking (a distinguishing symbol)

Sense 11

Meaning:

When a wrestler's shoulders are forced to the mat

Synonyms:

fall; pin

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Hypernyms ("pin" is a kind of...):

triumph; victory (a successful ending of a struggle or contest)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pin"):

takedown ((amateur wrestling) being brought to the mat from a standing position)

Holonyms ("pin" is a part of...):

wrestling match (a match between wrestlers)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

(chess) immobilize a piece

Classified under:

Verbs of fighting, athletic activities

Hypernyms (to "pin" is one way to...):

aggress; attack (take the initiative and go on the offensive)

Domain category:

chess; chess game (a board game for two players who move their 16 pieces according to specific rules; the object is to checkmate the opponent's king)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 2

Meaning:

To hold fast or prevent from moving

Example:

The child was pinned under the fallen tree

Synonyms:

immobilise; immobilize; pin; trap

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Sentence example:

The fighter managed to pin his opponent

Sense 3

Meaning:

Attach or fasten with pins

Example:

pin the needle to the shirt

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "pin" is one way to...):

fasten; fix; secure (cause to be firmly attached)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "pin"):

pin on (ascribe blame or guilt for something to (someone))

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something PP

Antonym:

unpin (remove the pins from; unfasten the pins of)

Derivation:

pin (a small slender (often pointed) piece of wood or metal used to support or fasten or attach things)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Pierce with a pin

Example:

pin down the butterfly

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "pin" is one way to...):

empale; impale; spike; transfix (pierce with a sharp stake or point)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "pin"):

skewer; spit (drive a skewer through)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Derivation:

pin (a small slender (often pointed) piece of wood or metal used to support or fasten or attach things)

Credits

 Context examples: 

A pin that is formed as a rolled sheet and acts to provide a retaining force on the part through which it is inserted.

(Motor Roll Pin Device Component, NCI Thesaurus)

He may be slow on his pins, but he fights with his head, and he hits like the kick of a horse.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The fiend pinning down the thief's pack behind him, I passed over quickly: it was an object of terror.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

I’ll put a pin in it.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The results provide a powerful map to pin brain areas to genes tied to neurodevelopmental disorders and human-specific brain functions.

(An Atlas of the Developing Human Brain, NIH)

Some weeks afterwards I learned incidentally that my friend spent a day at Windsor, whence he returned with a remarkably fine emerald tie-pin.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

You are an intellectual sign, so you like to have facts to pin to your decisions, but in the coming year, your instinct will be sharp, and you will need to trust it.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

He sprang to his feet, drew and opened a sailor's clasp-knife, and balancing it open on the palm of his hand, threatened to pin the doctor to the wall.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Terms low grade and high grade PIN should be reserved for models in which the epithelial lesion has documented potential to progress to invasive carcinoma.

(Atypical Hyperplasia of the Mouse Prostate Gland, NCI Thesaurus/MMHCC)

Terms describing the degree of nuclear atypia, such as mild or severe, can be applied (analogous to distinctions between low and high grade PIN described below).

(Epithelial Atypical Hyperplasia of the Mouse Prostate Gland, NCI Thesaurus/MMHCC)