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fine

fine

321 2.8
Money paid as a punishment for breaking a law or rule
  • noun
  • /faɪn/
translation icon : multa
  • They ended up paying a fine of around six times that number.
  • pay fines
  • impose fines
  • bail and fines

Now what will happen is that the fines will become way too high.

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Examples

  • She had to pay a fine after not following the parking regulations.

  • You have seven days to make all modifications and pay all fines or you will be evicted at once.

  • I wonder what the fine will be?

  • Imagine the impact a large fine could have on your practice.

    Academic text (2011)
  • What's the fine for this?

  • Offenders paid a small fine directly to the state rather than to the person affected.

    Academic text (1991)
  • Now, there have already been huge fines to some of these chemical companies.

  • Every major pharmaceutical device company has paid these enormous fines for healthcare fraud.

  • Have to pay millions in fines for deceptive advertising.

  • I'm ordering you to pay a fine of $3500.

Synonyms

penalty
vsfine
487 2.5

A punishment you get for breaking a rule, law or doing something wrong

is the specific money payment required as punishment rather than any consequence
heavy fine
vsfine
1 3.7

An amount of money a person or company must pay as punishment for breaking a law

is the ordinary monetary punishment without stressing larger amount
mulct
vsfine
  • Archaic
9.9

Money paid as a punishment for breaking a rule or law

is the common general word for that monetary punishment
amercement
vsfine
  • Archaic
9.9

A fine a court orders when the judge chooses the amount

is the general monetary punishment not limited to court discretion

Antonyms

328 1.3

To give something to someone to thank them for doing something good

Idioms

Look through something very carefully to find small mistakes

A phrase said to show something would be nice but is very unlikely to happen

To do something very well after a lot of practice

Looks very smart and attractive

Very wet, rainy weather that ducks like

9.9

Very small, delicate, and of excellent quality

Nice clothes make a person look more impressive

Compounds

55 5.1

A small difference that is hard to see between similar things

37 4.4

Small printed text in a contract that tells important rules or extra costs

21 2.0

Having an attractive appearance

20 4.1

Things people make mainly to be beautiful and admired, like paintings or sculptures

14 3.9

A special, fancy meal at a high quality restaurant

13 3.5

A high-quality drink made from grapes that often improves with age

11 3.2

A kind of work that shows beauty and ideas, like painting or sculpture

A nickname for Norwich in England for its beautiful old buildings and lively arts

fine-tooth comb
  • Informal
7 4.3

A careful search that finds small mistakes or details

2 4.1

A very careful check of something to find small errors

1 5.0

With many very small teeth close together, like a comb or saw

1 3.7

An amount of money a person or company must pay as punishment for breaking a law

A university degree for artists, writers and performers after a first degree

1 3.1

Tiny drops of liquid that float in the air

1 3.9

A very good strong drink made from grain and aged in wooden barrels

1 6.5

A pet bird often kept and loved like a parrot

1 2.3

A small amount of money you pay when you return library books late

fine structure
  • Specialized
1 9.1

A group of very close lines in the light from an atom that show small energy differences

fine thing
  • Informal
1 7.2

Something very good or lucky that you doubt will happen

Taking pictures as art to show the artist's personal vision

Doctor of Fine Arts
  • Specialized
6.3

A special degree that a university gives to people for work in the fine arts

Pictures taken with a camera to show an artist's personal vision, not for news or sale

A careful look at small parts to find tiny differences

A surface made of very small, closely packed grains that feels smooth

A comb with very close teeth used to remove lice from hair

A garden tool with many close teeth for gathering leaves and small debris

A low shrub with thin leaves and purple-red flowers that grows on open, poor soil

A careful, detailed check of a document or record to find small errors

A small tool with very close teeth used to remove lice or untangle hair

9.9

A climbing small bush from the southeastern United States with large red-purple bell-shaped flowers

How Severe

sanction
  • Formal
577 6.1
fine
321 2.8
to ticket
12 4.1
warning
1.0

Surface Forms

fine singular
fines plural

Etymology

Fine (noun) comes from the same Latin finis, 'end', via Old French, because money was paid to bring a legal matter to an end, so a fine is the money you must pay as a punishment.