pin down
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pin
(pĭn)n.
1.
a. A short, straight, stiff piece of wire with a blunt head and a sharp point, used especially for fastening.
b. Something, such as a safety pin, that resembles such a piece of wire in shape or use.
c. A whit; a jot: didn't care a pin about the matter.
2. A slender, usually cylindrical piece of wood or metal for holding or fastening parts together, or serving as a support for suspending one thing from another, as:
a. A thin rod for securing the ends of fractured bones.
b. A peg for fixing the crown to the root of a tooth.
c. A cotter pin.
d. The part of a key stem entering a lock.
e. Music One of the pegs securing the strings and regulating their tension on a stringed instrument.
f. Nautical A belaying pin.
g. Nautical A thole pin.
3. An ornament fastened to clothing by means of a clasp.
4. A rolling pin.
5. Sports
a. One of the wooden clubs at which the ball is aimed in bowling.
b. A flagstick.
c. See fall.
6. pins Informal The legs: is steady on his pins.
7. Electronics A lead on a device that plugs into a socket to connect the device to a system.
8. Computers
a. Any of the pegs on the platen of a printer, which engage holes at the edges of paper.
b. Any of the styluses that form a dot matrix on a printer.
c. Any of the small metal prongs at the end of a connector that fit into the holes in a port.
tr.v. pinned, pin·ning, pins
1. To fasten or secure with or as if with a pin or pins.
2. To transfix.
3. To place in a position of trusting dependence: He pinned his faith on an absurdity.
4.
a. To hold fast; immobilize: He was pinned under the wreckage of the truck.
b. Sports To win a fall from in wrestling.
5. To give (a woman) a fraternity pin in token of attachment.
adj.
Phrasal Verbs: Having a grain suggestive of the heads of pins. Used of leather.
pin down
1. To fix or establish clearly: She pinned down the cause of the accident.
2. To force (someone) to give firm opinions or precise information: The reporter pinned the governor down on the issue of taxes.
pin on
To attribute (a crime) to (someone): The murder was pinned on the wrong suspect.
[Middle English, from Old English pinn, perhaps from Latin pinna, feather; see pet- in Indo-European roots.]
PIN
(pĭn)abbr.
personal identification number
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
pin down
vb (tr, adverb)
1. to force (someone) to make a decision or carry out a promise
2. to define clearly: he had a vague suspicion that he couldn't quite pin down.
3. to confine to a place: the fallen tree pinned him down.
n
4. (Wrestling) wrestling a pinfall
5. (Military) military the use of air attacks, missiles, etc to prevent military forces from moving
6. (Military) military the situation or condition of being unable to move or manoeuvre because of the action of enemy forces
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Verb | 1. | pin down - define clearly; "I cannot narrow down the rules for this game" determine - fix in scope; fix the boundaries of; "the tree determines the border of the property" concretize - make something concrete |
| 2. |  pin down - place in a confining or embarrassing position; "He was trapped in a difficult situation" | |
| 3. | pin down - attach with or as if with a pin; "pin up a picture" attach - cause to be attached |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
Translations
يَجعَلُه يُعْطي جوابا مؤكَّدا
přimět
få nogen til at forpligte sig
kihúz
knÿja fram ákveîiî svar
kesin karar verdirmek
w>pin down
vt sep
(= fix down: with pins) → an- or festheften; (= hold, weight down) → beschweren, niederhalten; (= trap: rockfall etc) → einklemmen; he pinned him down on the canvas → er drückte ihn auf die Matte; two of the gang pinned him down → zwei aus der Bande drückten ihn zu Boden; our troops were pinned down by heavy artillery fire → unsere Truppen wurden durch heftiges Artilleriefeuer festgehalten
(fig) to pin somebody down → jdn festnageln or festlegen; he wouldn’t be pinned down to any particular date → er ließ sich nicht auf ein bestimmtes Datum festnageln or festlegen; he’s a difficult man to pin down → man kann ihn nur schwer dazu bringen, sich festzulegen; I’ve seen him/it somewhere before but I can’t pin him/it down → ich habe ihn/es schon mal irgendwo gesehen, kann ihn/es aber nicht einordnen; we can’t pin down the source of the rumours → wir können die Quelle der Gerüchte nicht lokalisieren; it’s not easy to pin down the precise cause of this → es ist nicht leicht, die genaue Ursache dafür festzustellen; there’s something odd here, but I can’t pin it down → irgendetwas ist hier merkwürdig, aber ich kann nicht genau sagen, was
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
pin
(pin) noun1. a short, thin, pointed piece of metal used eg to hold pieces of fabric, paper etc together, especially when making clothes. The papers are fastened together by a pin.
2. a similar but more ornamental object. a hat-pin.
verb – past tense, past participle pinned – 1. to fasten with a pin. She pinned the material together.
2. to hold by pressing against something. The fallen tree pinned him to the ground.
ˈpincushion noun a small cushion or similar object into which pins are pushed for keeping.
ˈpinhole noun a hole made by a pin. A pinhole camera does not need a lens.
ˈpinpoint verb to place or show very exactly. He pinpointed the position on the map.
ˈpin-up noun1. a picture of an attractive girl (or man), often pinned on a wall. He has dozens of pin-ups in his room; (also adjective) a pin-up girl.
2. the girl (or man). She's the favourite pin-up of the soldiers.
pin down to make (someone) give a definite answer, statement, opinion or promise. I can't pin him down to a definite date for his arrival.
pins and needles a tingling feeling in one's hands, arms, feet or legs. I've got pins and needles in my arm.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.