pick

[ pik ]

/ pɪk /

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See synonyms for: pick / picked / picking on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to choose or select from among a group: to pick a contestant from the audience.

to seek and find occasion for; provoke: to pick a fight.

to attempt to find; seek out: to pick flaws in an argument.

to steal the contents of: Her pocket was picked yesterday.

to open (a lock) with a device other than the key, as a sharp instrument or wire, especially for the purpose of burglary.

to pierce, indent, dig into, or break up (something) with a pointed instrument: to pick rock; to pick ore.

to form (a hole) by such action: to pick a hole in asphalt.

to use a pointed instrument, the fingers, the teeth, the beak, etc., on (a thing), in order to remove or loosen something, as a small part or adhering matter: to pick one's teeth.

to prepare for use by removing a covering piece by piece, as feathers, hulls, or other parts: to pick a fowl.

to detach or remove piece by piece with the fingers: She picked the meat from the bones.

to pluck or gather one by one: to pick flowers.

(of birds or other animals) to take up (small bits of food) with the bill or teeth.

to eat daintily or in small morsels.

to separate, pull apart, or pull to pieces: to pick fibers.

Music.

to pluck (the strings of an instrument).
to play (a stringed instrument) by plucking with the fingers.

verb (used without object)

to strike with or use a pick or other pointed instrument on something.

(of birds or other animals) to take up small bits of food with the bill or teeth: The hens were busily picking about in their coop.

to select carefully or fastidiously.

to pilfer; steal.

to pluck or gather fruit, flowers, etc.

Basketball. to execute a pick.

noun

the act of choosing or selecting; choice; selection: to take one's pick.

a person or thing that is selected: He is our pick for president.

the choicest or most desirable part, example, or examples: This horse is the pick of the stable.

the right of selection: He gave me my pick of the litter.

the quantity of a crop picked, as from trees, bushes, etc., at a particular time: The pick was poor this season.

Printing.

a speck of dirt, hardened ink, or extra metal on set type or a plate.
a small area removed from the surface of a coated paper by ink that adheres to the form.

a stroke with something pointed: The rock shattered at the first pick of the ax.

Basketball. an offensive maneuver in which a player moves into a position between a defender and a teammate with the ball so as to prevent the defender from interfering with the shot.Compare pick-and-roll.

Verb Phrases

pick at,

to find fault with unnecessarily or persistently; nag.
to eat sparingly or daintily: As he was ill, he only picked at his food.
to grasp at; touch; handle: The baby loved to pick at her mother's glasses.

pick off,

to remove by pulling or plucking off.
to single out and shoot: The hunter picked off a duck rising from the marsh.
Baseball. to put out (a base runner) in a pick-off play.

pick on,

Informal. to criticize or blame; tease; harass.
to single out; choose: The professor always picks on me to translate long passages.

pick out,

to choose; designate: to pick out one's successor.
to distinguish from that which surrounds or accompanies; recognize: to pick out a well-known face in a crowd.
to discern (sense or meaning); discriminate.
to play (a melody) by ear; work out note by note.
to extract by picking.

pick over, to examine (an assortment of items) in order to make a selection: Eager shoppers were picking over the shirts on the bargain tables.

pick up,

to lift or take up: to pick up a stone.
to collect, especially in an orderly manner: Pick up the tools when you're finished.
to recover (one's courage, health, etc.); regain.
to gain by occasional opportunity; obtain casually: to pick up a livelihood.
to learn, as by experience: I've picked up a few Japanese phrases.
to claim: to pick up one's bags at an airport.
to take (a person or thing) into a car or ship, etc., or along with one.
to bring into range of reception, observation, etc.: to pick up Rome on one's radio.
to accelerate; gain (speed).
to put in good order; tidy: to pick up a room.
to make progress; improve: Business is beginning to pick up.
to catch or contract, as a disease.
Informal. to become acquainted with informally or casually, often in hope of a sexual relationship: Let's pick up some dates tonight.
to resume or continue after being left off: Let's pick up the discussion in our next meeting.
Informal. to take into custody; arrest: They picked him up for vagrancy.
Informal. to obtain; find; purchase: She picked up some nice shoes on sale.
Slang. to steal: to pick up jewels and silver.
to accept, as in order to pay: to pick up the check.

pick up on, Informal.

become aware or cognizant of; be perceptive about; notice: to pick up on the hostess's hostility.
to pay special attention to; keep an eye on: to pick up on a troubled student.

OTHER WORDS FOR pick

4 rob, pilfer.

11 reap, collect.

See synonyms for pick on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about pick

pick and choose, to be very careful or particular in choosing: With such a limited supply of fresh fruit, you won't be able to pick and choose.

pick apart, to criticize severely or in great detail: They picked her apart the moment she left the room.

pick it up, Informal. to move, work, etc., at a faster rate.

pick one's way / steps, to walk with care and deliberation: She picked her way across the muddy field.

pick someone's brains. brain (def. 12).

Origin of pick

First recorded in 1250–1300; partly from Middle English verb piken, pyken, pikken, pekken “to work with a pick; work or hit with the mouth or beak,” Old English nouns píc “point, pointed tool, pike” and pícung “stigmata,” from the unrecorded verb pícian “to prick”; cognate with Dutch pikken, German picken, Old Norse pikka “to prick, pick”; partly from Old French piquier “to prick, pluck”; see origin at peck¹, pike⁵, pique¹

synonym study for pick

1. See choose.

OTHER WORDS FROM pick

pick·a·ble, adjectiveun·pick·a·ble, adjective

Words nearby pick

pich, pi character, pichiciago, pichiciego, Picinni, pick, pickaback, pickaback plane, pickaback plant, pick a bone with, pick and choose

Other definitions for pick (2 of 3)

pick²

[ pik ]

/ pɪk /

noun

a heavy tool consisting of an iron or steel head, usually curved, tapering to a point at one or both ends, mounted on a wooden handle, and used for loosening and breaking up soil, rock, etc.; pickax.

a hammerlike tool for the rough dressing of stone, having two sharp, pyramidal faces.

any pointed or other tool or instrument for picking (often used in combination): a toothpick;an ice pick.

Music. plectrum.

Slang. a large pocket comb having long, widely spaced teeth.

Origin of pick

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English pikk(e); perhaps variant of pike⁵

Other definitions for pick (3 of 3)

pick³

[ pik ]

/ pɪk /

Textiles.

verb (used with object)

to cast (a shuttle).

noun

(in a loom) one passage of the shuttle.

filling (def. 5).

Origin of pick

First recorded in 1790–95; variant of pitch¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use pick in a sentence

We’ll dive deeper into disposable hand warmers when we talk about our favorite budget pick, but these are a good option to keep in the back of your brain when thinking about ski-appropriate heating options.
Best hand warmers: Block the chill during your favorite winter activities|PopSci Commerce Team|February 10, 2021|Popular-Science
The Detroit Lions already have agreed to trade Matthew Stafford to the Los Angeles Rams for a king’s ransom of draft picks and fellow quarterback Jared Goff.
NFL begins an uncertain offseason, with questions about vaccines, the salary cap and more|Mark Maske|February 9, 2021|Washington Post
Check out the outfitters in the surrounding communities, and have your pick of anything from classic sloops to lobster boats.
The Ultimate Acadia National Park Travel Guide|Virginia M. Wright|February 8, 2021|Outside Online
Here’s a list of picks from the people who are paid to pay attention to the game, along with a few others from our animal friends.
A compendium of Super Bowl picks including one from a goat. (Not the GOAT, an actual goat.)|Matt Bonesteel|February 5, 2021|Washington Post

The team had been linked to Matthew Stafford, but the Detroit Lions agreed last week to trade him to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for Jared Goff and a bounty of draft picks.
Colts owner quells Andrew Luck rumors: ‘We have to get on with the business of reality’|Des Bieler|February 5, 2021|Washington Post
In such beer polls, I suspect a lot of voters would pick Huckabee.
Why This Liberal Hearts Huckabee|Sally Kohn|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
What image are you hoping people who pick up this book and read it, come away with?
Tim Howard’s Wall of Intensity|William O’Connor|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Couple guided Stella as she crawled and dipped her chest to pick up each magnet.
Dungeons and Genital Clamps: Inside a Legendary BDSM Chateau|Ian Frisch|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Wellington, New Zealand Our Oceania pick is the latest city to wholeheartedly embrace the global Brooklyn movement.
Next Stop, Quito: Our Top Cities for 2015|Brandon Presser|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He said the brokers promise that the Italian navy will pick them up, which he says has actually driven the prices down.
Inside the Smuggling Networks Flooding Europe with Refugees|Barbie Latza Nadeau|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We are going to send our butler to the sale to-morrow, to pick up some of that sixty-four.
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, v. 2(of 2)|Charles Dickens
The majority pick up a job when they can, but are inevitably idle and suffering two-thirds of the time.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley
But if they all pick up the broadcast that this is where to get a free ride home, I'll have just another sand trap here.
Fee of the Frontier|Horace Brown Fyfe
Isabel longed for the time when she should enter them and pick up the threads dropped from her mother's nerveless fingers.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
The Chancellor stopped him as he left the King's presence, telling him he should show more reserve and pick his words.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison

British Dictionary definitions for pick (1 of 3)

pick¹

/ (pɪk) /

verb

to choose (something) deliberately or carefully, from or as if from a group or number; select

to pluck or gather (fruit, berries, or crops) from (a tree, bush, field, etc)to pick hops; to pick a whole bush

(tr) to clean or prepare (fruit, poultry, etc) by removing the indigestible parts

(tr) to remove loose particles from (the teeth, the nose, etc)

(esp of birds) to nibble or gather (corn, etc)

(when intr, foll by at) to nibble (at) fussily or without appetite

to separate (strands, fibres, etc), as in weaving

(tr) to provoke (an argument, fight, etc) deliberately

(tr) to steal (money or valuables) from (a person's pocket)

(tr) to open (a lock) with an instrument other than a key

to pluck the strings of (a guitar, banjo, etc)

(tr) to make (one's way) carefully on footthey picked their way through the rubble

pick and choose to select fastidiously, fussily, etc

pick someone's brains to obtain information or ideas from someone

noun

freedom or right of selection (esp in the phrase take one's pick)

a person, thing, etc, that is chosen first or preferredthe pick of the bunch

the act of picking

the amount of a crop picked at one period or from one area

printing a speck of dirt or paper fibre or a blob of ink on the surface of set type or a printing plate

See also pick at, pick off, pick on, pick out, pick-up

Derived forms of pick

pickable, adjective

Word Origin for pick

C15: from earlier piken to pick, influenced by French piquer to pierce; compare Middle Low German picken, Dutch pikken

British Dictionary definitions for pick (2 of 3)

pick²

/ (pɪk) /

noun

a tool with a handle carrying a long steel head curved and tapering to a point at one or both ends, used for loosening soil, breaking rocks, etc

any of various tools used for picking, such as an ice pick or toothpick

a plectrum

verb

(tr) to pierce, dig, or break up (a hard surface) with a pick

(tr) to form (a hole) in this way

Word Origin for pick

C14: perhaps variant of pike ²

British Dictionary definitions for pick (3 of 3)

pick³

/ (in weaving pɪk) /

verb

(tr) to cast (a shuttle)

noun

one casting of a shuttle

a weft or filling thread

Word Origin for pick

C14: variant of pitch 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with pick

pick

In addition to the idioms beginning with pick

pick a bone with
pick and choose
pick apart
pick a quarrel
pick at
picked over
pick holes in
pick off
pick of the litter
pick on
pick one's way
pick out
pick over
pick someone's brain
pick to pieces
pick up
pick up on
pick up the pieces

also see:

bone to pick
slim pickings

pick

OTHER WORDS FOR pick

Idioms about pick

Origin of pick

synonym study for pick

OTHER WORDS FROM pick

Words nearby pick

Other definitions for pick (2 of 3)

Origin of pick

Other definitions for pick (3 of 3)

Origin of pick

Words related to pick

How to use pick in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pick (1 of 3)

Derived forms of pick

Word Origin for pick

British Dictionary definitions for pick (2 of 3)

Word Origin for pick

British Dictionary definitions for pick (3 of 3)

Word Origin for pick

Other Idioms and Phrases with pick