pin down
Britishverb
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to force (someone) to make a decision or carry out a promise
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to define clearly
he had a vague suspicion that he couldn't quite pin down
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to confine to a place
the fallen tree pinned him down
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Fix or establish clearly, as in The firefighters finally were able to pin down the source of the odor . [Mid-1900s]
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Force someone to give precise information or opinions, as in The reporter pinned down the governor on the issue of conservation measures . [c. 1700]
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.
Color also proves surprisingly difficult to pin down in words.
In the film a doctor explains that there are times when physicians aren’t able to pin down a diagnosis or there are multiple diagnoses.
From Los Angeles Times
In the fog of war, precise data is scarce and the battlefield is shifting too fast for investors to pin down a reliable damage assessment.
He was still talking to me in a pleasant tone of voice, but my hands were pinned down by my sides.
From Literature
Coppola, “who changed quite a bit, was the hardest one for me to pin down,” Fischer said.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
