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pin

pin

19 1.3
A wooden object shaped like a club set up to be knocked down in bowling
  • noun
  • /pɪn/
: birlo
  • So the bowlers do their bowling and sometimes they knock down all the pins, which is called a what?

Like Olivia and Courtney kissed non-stop and then Keith sat on a bowling pin.

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Examples

  • This Boston likes to play candle pin bowling, which is a bit unusual.

  • There are bowling pins mixed in with the wood.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Well, who knocked down a pin all by himself?

  • It's not enough to knock the pins down; you gotta break them besides.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • I want you to knock down all of the pins.

  • We've created coastal bowling-pin communities; we set 'em up and the weather takes 'em down.

    Blog text (18)
  • Jugglers tossed bowling pins and empty cans of beer.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • Even the bowling pins.

  • In bowling, players earn points by knocking down pins with a heavy ball.

  • To win the game, you need to knock down all ten pins in one turn.

Synonyms

bowling pin
vspin
6 1.4

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

is the general slender wooden target used across bowling types
duckpin
vspin
  • Jargon
1 9.0

A small, short bowling pin used in a type of bowling with smaller balls

is the usual slender club-shaped wooden target rather than the squat form
ninepin
vspin
  • UK
1 8.8

A wooden pin in a game like bowling that players knock down

is the general target object not restricted to nine-target games
Kegel
vspin
  • UK
1 9.5

A wooden pin used in a game like bowling

is the broader club-shaped wooden target across multiple games
tenpin
vspin
1 6.5

One of the ten pins in the game of bowling that you knock down with a ball

is the general slender wooden target used in many bowling games
candlepin
vspin
  • US
1 8.6

Thin upright bowling pin used in a type of bowling with small balls

is the typical club-shaped wooden target, not the thin cylindrical form
skittle pin
vspin
  • UK
1 6.8

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

is the common wooden target across variants, not limited to regional games
headpin
vspin
  • Jargon
6.9

The front pin of the ten pins in bowling

is any of the wooden targets, not only the front position
kingpin
vspin
  • Specialized
6.9

The front pin in the triangle of ten pins in bowling

is the general target object rather than specifically the foremost one

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

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

Surface Forms

pin singular
pins plural

Etymology

Pin for bowling comes from the old word pinn meaning 'peg', because the targets were originally wooden pegs. That's why the tall, narrow objects you knock down are called pins.