Skip to main content
to pin

to pin

1 8.1
To make a chess piece unable to move without exposing a more valuable piece like the king
  • verb
  • /pɪn/
  • Specialized
: clavar
  • Bradford Barnes is the Vice President of Administration, and it takes almost an hour to pin down exactly what he does.

Examples

  • In Twombly and Iqbal, however, the Court labored to pin down a meaningful and substantive test for plausibility.

    Academic text (2010)
  • We finally were able to pin down the last one.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • Instead, the project speaks to an inability to pin down the photograph's specific "social and cultural uses."

    Academic text (2010)
  • But she was also attempting to pin down a danger to the ship and its occupants.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • The rook is pinned, unable to move without exposing the king to capture.

  • In the game, she managed to pin her opponent's knight, preventing any escape.

  • He was able to pin the piece to the board, securing his strategic advantage.

Idioms

to care a pin
  • Archaic
1 9.9

To not mind something at all

1 9.9

A phrase people say to make fun of someone who brags

Phrasal Verbs

59 4.8

To say someone caused a problem when they did not

28 5.1

To make someone give a clear answer and stop avoiding it

27 3.5

To make something exact, like a date or reason

12 3.7

To attach something in place with a pin

7 3.6

To attach something to a wall or board with a pin

to pin back
  • Specialized
1 9.5

To make the ears lie closer to the head by surgery

Compounds

13 1.8

A secret number that lets you access bank or phone accounts

12 2.2

A small metal clip that holds hair in place

11 1.0

A small metal thing with a sharp point and a cover that holds clothes together

8 1.5

A long round tool for flattening dough in the kitchen

firing pin
  • Specialized
8 6.8

A small metal part inside a gun that hits the cartridge to start the bullet moving

6 1.4

A heavy wooden thing shaped like a club that players try to knock down in bowling

pin-up
  • NSFW
5 7.5

A picture of an attractive person or the person shown

cotter pin
  • Specialized
2 7.4

A metal pin with split ends that you put through a hole and bend apart to hold parts together

1 2.6

A thin piece of metal with a sharp end that holds cloth or paper

pin money
  • Archaic
1 6.1

A small amount of money kept for personal expenses

pin tumbler
  • Specialized
1 7.3

A set of small metal pins inside a lock that a key lines up to open it

1 5.8

A small curl made by twisting damp hair and holding it with a pin

1 1.4

A small clip made of wood or plastic that holds clothes on a line while they dry

safety pin
  • Neologism
1 2.7

A small metal object worn on clothing to show support for a person or group

pin oak
  • US
1 5.0

A large oak tree that grows fast with deeply cut leaves and bright red color in autumn

1 6.5

A machine you play by hitting buttons to move a metal ball

pin-up art
  • NSFW
1 7.5

Pictures of women posed in an attractive, old-fashioned style

gudgeon pin
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A metal pin that joins the piston to the connecting rod in an engine so the piston can turn slightly

dowel pin
  • Specialized
1 6.7

A small round metal or wooden rod that you put into holes in two pieces to hold them together

pin bone
  • Specialized
1 9.4

A small hard part inside a sirloin steak between the flat bone and the porterhouse

1 2.3

A short pin with a flat head that attaches paper to a wall or board

belaying pin
  • Specialized
1 9.2

A short wooden or metal bar that holds a rope when you wrap it around

pin wrench
  • Specialized
1 7.9

A wrench with pins that fit into holes to turn round nuts like locknuts

1 6.8

A small wooden target that players knock down in the game of skittles

1 8.5

A small tree or bush with bright red sour fruit

1 6.3

A small to medium oak tree from east-central North America with leaves that have many sharp points

swivel pin
  • Specialized
1 7.5

A metal part that turns to let a car's wheel move when you steer

bitt pin
  • Specialized
9.9

A pin people place across a post on a ship to stop a rope from slipping off

9.8

A weed with reddish stems and small purple flowers used as food for farm animals

9.9

A spreading plant with reddish flowers grown for animal food

A duck with a long neck and long thin tail feathers

A bird with very long middle tail feathers

A bird with long middle tail feathers that lives in Europe and Africa

A small decorative pin worn on clothes, often in groups

wrist pin
  • Specialized
8.5

A metal rod placed through wrist bones to hold them still while they heal

wrist pin
  • Specialized
8.6

A small metal rod that joins a piston to the rod that moves it in an engine

How Restricted

to checkmate
1 5.7
to pin
  • Specialized
1 8.1
to trap
550 2.6
to threaten
527 3.0

Surface Forms

pin infinitive
pinned past
pinned past participle
pinning present participle
pins third person singular

Etymology

Pin in chess borrows the idea of fixing something in place from old English pinn meaning 'peg', meaning a piece is held so it cannot move without danger. So a pinned piece is 'stuck' like something held by a pin.