fine

¹ American

[fahyn] / faɪn /

adjective

of superior or best quality; of high or highest grade.

fine wine.

Synonyms:

select, perfect, consummate, finished

Antonyms:

inferior
choice, excellent, or admirable.

a fine painting.
satisfactory or acceptable; okay: The story is fine for a class assignment but not good enough to publish in the school paper.

It's fine with me if you don't want to go.
The story is fine for a class assignment but not good enough to publish in the school paper.
consisting of minute particles.

fine sand;
a fine purée.
very thin or slender.

fine thread.
keen or sharp, as a tool.

Is the knife fine enough to carve well?

Synonyms:

acute
delicate in texture; filmy.

fine cotton fabric.
delicately fashioned.

fine tracery.
highly skilled or accomplished.

a fine musician.
trained to the maximum degree, as an athlete.
characterized by or affecting refinement or elegance.

a fine lady.
polished or refined.

fine manners.
affectedly ornate or elegant.

A style so fine repels the average reader.
delicate or subtle.

a fine distinction.
bright and clear.

a fine day;
fine skin.
healthy; well.

In spite of his recent illness, he looks fine.
showy or smart; elegant in appearance.

a bird of fine plumage.
good-looking or handsome.

a fine young man.
(of a precious metal or its alloy) free from impurities or containing a large amount of pure metal.

fine gold; Sterling silver is 92.5 percent fine.
(used ironically or as an intensifier) terrible or unacceptable: Not inviting me—that’s a fine way to treat a friend!

It’s a fine mess you’ve got us into!
Not inviting me—that’s a fine way to treat a friend!

adverb

Informal. in an excellent manner; very well.

She's now free of pain and can walk just fine.
Informal. satisfactorily; acceptably.

I did fine but not great on my final exams.
very small.

She writes so fine I can hardly read it.
Billiards, Pool. in such a way that the driven ball barely touches the object ball in passing.
Nautical. as efficiently close as possible into the wind, just short of pinching.

sailing fine.

verb (used without object)

fined, fining

to become fine or finer, as by refining.
to become less, as in size or proportions; reduce; diminish (often followed bydown ).

The plumpness fines down with exercise.

verb (used with object)

fined, fining

to make fine or finer, especially by refining or pulverizing.
to reduce the size or proportions of (often used with down oraway ).

to fine down the heavy features; to fine away superfluous matter in a design.
to clarify (wines or spirits) by filtration.

noun

fines,
1. Mining. crushed ore sufficiently fine to pass through a given screen.
2. Agriculture. the fine bits of corn kernel knocked off during handling of the grain.

idioms

cut fine, to calculate precisely, especially without allowing for possible error or accident.

To finish in ten minutes is to cut it too fine.

fine ² American

[fahyn] / faɪn /

noun

a sum of money imposed as a penalty for an offense or dereliction.

a parking fine.
Law. a fee paid by a feudal tenant to the landlord, as on the renewal of tenure.
English Law. (formerly) a conveyance of land through decree of a court, based upon a simulated lawsuit.
Archaic. a penalty of any kind.

verb (used with object)

fined, fining

to subject to a fine or pecuniary penalty; punish by a fine.

The judge fined him and released him on parole.

idioms

in fine,
1. in short; briefly.
2. in conclusion; finally.
  
  It was, in fine, a fitting end to the story.

fine ³ American

[fee-ney] / ˈfi neɪ /

noun

Music.

the end of a repeated section, whether da capo or dal segno.
the end of a composition that consists of several movements.

fine ⁴ American

[feen] / fin /

noun

ordinary French brandy, usually with no indication of the maker's name or location.

fine ¹ British

/ faɪn /