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.
He pinned down fronds with his fingers, removed his straw farm hat, and fanned himself absently with its wide brim, that mischievous smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
From Literature
“Palantir’s story used to be hard to pin down: powerful technology, big claims, and a lot of debate,” he added.
From Barron's
And while the concept for the memorial is still germinating, Nina has already pinned down the title.
From BBC
As genre names go, “post-punk” is particularly hard to pin down, but it’s generally used to describe an array of underground rock forms that emerged in the late ’70s, mostly in the U.K.
That rate is extremely difficult to pin down.
From MarketWatch
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.
