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• pin
  pin

  noun

  a small, slender, often pointed piece of wood, metal, etc., used to fasten, support, or attach things.
• PIN
  PIN

  noun

  a number assigned to an individual, used to establish identity in order to gain access to a computer system via an automatic teller machine, a point-of-sale terminal, or other device.

pin

¹ American  

[pin] / pɪn /

noun

• pins
  plural

1. a small, slender, often pointed piece of wood, metal, etc., used to fasten, support, or attach things.

   Synonyms:

   peg, bolt

2. a short, slender piece of wire with a point at one end and a head at the other, for fastening things together.

3. any of various forms of fasteners or ornaments consisting essentially or partly of a pointed or penetrating wire or shaft (often used in combination).

   a jeweled pin.

   Synonyms:

   brooch

4. a badge having a pointed bar or pin attached, by which it is fastened to the clothing.

   a fraternity pin.

5. Digital Technology. a photo or link that is bookmarked on Pinterest, a website and mobile application.

   She added 5 pins to her recipes board.

6. Machinery.

   1. a short metal rod, as a linchpin, driven through holes in adjacent parts, as a hub and an axle, to keep the parts together.

   2. a short cylindrical rod or tube, as a wrist pin or crankpin, joining two parts so as to permit them to move in one plane relative to each other.

   3. a short axle, as one on which a pulley rotates in a block.

7. the part of a cylindrical key stem entering a lock.

8. a clothespin.

9. a hairpin.

10. rolling pin.

11. a peg, nail, or stud marking the center of a target.

12. Bowling. any one of the rounded wooden clubs set up as the target in tenpins, ninepins, duckpins, etc.

13. Golf. the flag staff which identifies a hole.

14. any of the projecting knobs or rails on a pinball machine that serve as targets for the ball.

15. Informal. a human leg.

16. Music. peg.

17. Wrestling. a fall.

18. Nautical.

    1. an axle for a sheave of a block.

    2. belaying pin.

19. Carpentry. a tenon in a dovetail joint; dovetail.

20. a very small amount; a trifle.

    Such insincere advice isn't worth a pin.

21. Chess. the immobilization of an enemy piece by attacking with one's queen, rook, or bishop.

22. Electronics. a pin-shaped connection, as the terminals on the base of an electron tube or the connections on an integrated circuit.

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verb (used with object)

• pins,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pinned,
  past participle,  past
• pinning
  present participle

1. to fasten or attach with or as with a pin or pins.

   to pin two pieces of cloth together.

2. to hold fast in a spot or position (sometimes followed bydown ).

   The debris pinned him down.

3. to transfix or mount with a pin or the like.

   to pin a flower as a botanical specimen.

4. Chess. to immobilize (an enemy piece) by placing one's queen, rook, or bishop in a position to check the exposed king or capture a valuable piece if the pinned piece were moved.

5. Wrestling. to secure a fall over one's opponent.

6. Digital Technology.

   1. to bookmark (a photo or link) on Pinterest, a website and mobile application.

      He pinned a jacket from Macy's on his fashion board.

   2. to fix (a social media post) to the top of a feed.

      She pinned a tweet about her forthcoming book to the top of her Twitter feed.

verb (used without object)

• pins,
  present (3rd person singular)
• pinned,
  past participle,  past
• pinning
  present participle

1. Digital Technology. to bookmark a photo or link on Pinterest.

   I've been pinning a lot lately.

verb phrase

1. pin down

   1. to bind or hold to a course of action, a promise, etc.

   2. to force (someone) to deal with a situation or to come to a decision.

      We tried to pin him down for a definite answer, but he was too evasive for us.

2. pin up to make (a piece of masonry) level or plumb with wedges.

3. pin in to fill (gaps in a rubble wall, etc.) with spalls.

idioms

1. get pinned,

   1. (of a young woman) to receive a male student's fraternity pin as a symbol of his affection and fidelity, usually symbolizing that the couple is going steady or plans to become engaged.

   2. (of a young couple) to become formally pledged to one another, though not yet engaged, by the bestowing of such a pin or the exchange of pins.

2. pin something on someone, to ascribe the blame or guilt for something to a person; show someone to be culpable.

   They pinned the crime on him.

3. pull the pin, to end a relationship, project, program, or the like, because of lack of continuing interest, success, funds, etc.

PIN ² American  

[pin] / pɪn /

noun

Computers.

1. a number assigned to an individual, used to establish identity in order to gain access to a computer system via an automatic teller machine, a point-of-sale terminal, or other device.

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pin ¹ British  

/ pɪn /

noun

1. 1. a short stiff straight piece of wire pointed at one end and either rounded or having a flattened head at the other: used mainly for fastening pieces of cloth, paper, etc, esp temporarily

   2. ( in combination )

      pinhole

2. short for cotter pin hairpin panel pin rolling pin safety pin

3. an ornamental brooch, esp a narrow one

4. a badge worn fastened to the clothing by a pin

5. something of little or no importance (esp in the phrases not care or give a pin ( for ))

6. a peg or dowel

7. anything resembling a pin in shape, function, etc

8. (in various bowling games) a usually club-shaped wooden object set up in groups as a target

9. Also called: cotter pin, safety pin. a clip on a hand grenade that prevents its detonation until removed or released

10. nautical

    1. See belaying pin

    2. the axle of a sheave

    3. the sliding closure for a shackle

11. music a metal tuning peg on a piano, the end of which is inserted into a detachable key by means of which it is turned

12. surgery a metal rod, esp of stainless steel, for holding together adjacent ends of fractured bones during healing

13. chess a position in which a piece is pinned against a more valuable piece or the king

14. golf the flagpole marking the hole on a green

15. 1. the cylindrical part of a key that enters a lock

    2. the cylindrical part of a lock where this part of the key fits

16. wrestling a position in which a person is held tight or immobile, esp with both shoulders touching the ground

17. a dovetail tenon used to make a dovetail joint

18. (in Britain) a miniature beer cask containing 4 1/ 2 gallons

19. informal (usually plural) a leg

20. to be forced to make an extreme effort

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verb

1. to attach, hold, or fasten with or as if with a pin or pins

2. to transfix with a pin, spear, etc

3. informal (foll by on) to place (the blame for something)

   he pinned the charge on his accomplice

4. chess to cause (an enemy piece) to be effectively immobilized by attacking it with a queen, rook, or bishop so that moving it would reveal a check or expose a more valuable piece to capture

5. Also: underpin. to support (masonry), as by driving in wedges over a beam

PIN ² British  

/ pɪn /

acronym

1. personal identification number: a number used by a holder of a cash card or credit card used in EFTPOS

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pin More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing pin

• hear a pin drop
• on pins and needles

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• repin
  verb (used with object)

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• pins
  plural

Participles

• pinning
  present
• pinned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• pin
  simple
• pins
  simple
• have pinned
  perfect
• has pinned
  perfect
• am pinning
  progressive
• are pinning
  progressive
• is pinning
  progressive
• have been pinning
  perfect progressive
• has been pinning
  perfect progressive

Past

• pinned
  simple
• had pinned
  perfect
• was pinning
  progressive
• were pinning
  progressive
• had been pinning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will pin
  simple
• will have pinned
  perfect
• will be pinning
  progressive
• will have been pinning
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of pin¹

First recorded before 1100; Middle English noun pinne, Old English pinn “peg”; cognate with Dutch pin, German Pinne, Old Norse pinni; perhaps frrom Latin pinna “feather, quill” ( see pinna); verb from the noun

Origin of PIN²

p(ersonal) i(dentification) n(umber)

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Explanation

A pin is a small, sharp device that's made for attaching and holding things together. When you sew a shirt, you first have to pin the paper pattern to the fabric with pins. Pins used for tacking paper to a bulletin board are made of sharp metal. A piece of jewelry that fastens to your shirt is also a pin. There are numerous other pins, from the pegs a guitar's strings are attached to; to the wooden pins you try to knock down when you're bowling; to the pins that hold your hairdo in place. And when you pin, you secure with a pin, or you hold someone down while wrestling.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pin PIN pins pinned pinning

When the student is done, De La Cruz hugs her and presents her with an American flag pin and a personalized Monica De La Cruz challenge coin.

From Slate ● Nov. 2, 2026

Geese were always an odd band to pin to anxieties about fabricated culture — if a label had resources and abilities to manufacture stars, why not do it for a 100x-hyperscaling pop act instead?

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

"To pin that on this administration, I don't think is a fair assessment," he said.

From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026

Badly treated at home, a place he describes as “a hand grenade with the pin half pulled,” young Sylvester was thrown out of a dozen schools as his family moved from one situation to another.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

A small Ghanaian flag is crudely pasted in the corner of the pin, as if only an afterthought.

From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer

The PIN would come from ID such as a driver’s license or could be provided by the county.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

The 37-year-old, known to his supporters as Danny Tommo, has also been charged with failing to disclose the PIN to his phone, Hampshire Police said.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

“Tell us right away if you think your card or PIN has been lost or stolen,” the Direct Express website says.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026

The caller—who shares your Yooper accent from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula—warns you that someone is trying to wire a large sum from your account, then requests your PIN to stop the transaction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026

I dial the 800 number, enter my PIN, dial Nia.

From "It’s Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini

Jergens makes industrial hardware such as clamps and quick-release pins that lock everything from aircraft panels to concert speakers into position.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026

Both men were found wearing necklaces featuring pins to remove the handsets' Sim cards.

From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026

And the levels of skill, drama and grit on display only served to underline those comments, with the American players also poignantly wearing custom pins to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

There was a skid, followed by the unmistakable sound of dog meeting trash cans: bowling ball, pins.

From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026

Then I pulled the pins out of my hair and let my hair loose.

From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall

Dawson then pinned the explosive Dasun Shanaka lbw for four after Root surprisingly had Mendis caught down the leg side.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

It’s not that Schoenbrun is bad at making movies, but their mind seems to operate like a story map, with hundreds of red strings pinned between plot points.

From Salon ● Oct. 29, 2026

Witnesses told national broadcaster ABC they heard a bang and saw a woman pinned between two cars.

From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026

I swung the nose of the CrossWave toward shore and pinned the throttle.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

But Love cannot be pinned down so easily.

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

Rather than pinning grand hopes and dreams to his books, he simply aims to help everyday people make sense of something they otherwise may not have time to.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026

Clutching a photograph of his missing son, Rajesh Ram is pinning his hopes on DNA testing -- like thousands of others desperately seeking relatives swept away by Nepal's catastrophic Himalayan floods.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

Nathaniel Moore went to Las Vegas to see why some lost boys are still pinning their hopes on Bitcoin.

From Slate ● Sep. 21, 2026

The U.S. is also pinning some of its hopes on the deal it has made with Venezuela for that country’s crude.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026

I reached out and pressed a palm against either side of the doorjamb, pinning myself in the entrance to the kitchen.

From "Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet" by Joanne Proulx

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Related Words

• affix
• bind
• clasp
• fasten
• fix

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