Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

pin on

Idioms  

  1. Attribute to someone, especially a wrongdoing or crime. For example, They pinned the murder on the wrong man. This expression uses pin in the sense of “attach.” [First half of 1900s]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In Armani's refined yet relaxed collection, some men sported a tie pin on their jacket lapel, while male and female models wore matching sparkling brooches.

From Barron's • Jan. 20, 2026

She reflects that her response — “There is nothing that comes to mind” — landed as if she’d “pulled the pin on a hand grenade.”

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 20, 2025

Both Trump and Vance are pictured in blue suits, white collared shirts and blue ties, with Trump wearing a small US flag pin on his lapel.

From BBC • Jan. 16, 2025

Equally impressive was her tee shot to a scary front left pin on the notorious par-3 12th hole to 3 feet for birdie.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 1, 2024

He looked at the pin on my shirt.

From "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.