pine
noun
any evergreen, conifer of the genus Pinus, having long, needle-shaped leaves, certain species of which yield timber, turpentine, tar, pitch, etc.
pine
1 American
[pahyn]
/ paɪn /
pine
2
American
[pahyn]
/ paɪn /
verb (used without object)
-
pines,
present (3rd person singular)
-
pined,
past participle, past
-
pining
present participle
-
to yearn deeply; suffer with longing; long painfully (often followed byfor ).
to pine for one's home and family.
-
to fail gradually in health or vitality from grief, regret, or longing (often followed byaway ).
Separated by their families, the lovers pined away.
-
Archaic. to be discontented; fret.
verb (used with object)
-
pines,
present (3rd person singular)
-
pined,
past participle, past
-
pining
present participle
noun
pine
1
British
/ paɪn /
noun
-
any evergreen resinous coniferous tree of the genus Pinus, of the N hemisphere, with long needle-shaped leaves and brown cones: family Pinaceae See also longleaf pine nut pine pitch pine Scots pine
-
any other tree or shrub of the family Pinaceae
-
the wood of any of these trees
-
any of various similar but unrelated plants, such as ground pine and screw pine
pine
2
British
/ paɪn /
verb
-
(intr; often foll by for or an infinitive) to feel great longing or desire; yearn
-
to become ill, feeble, or thin through worry, longing, etc
-
archaic (tr) to mourn or grieve for
Pine
3
British
/ paɪn /
noun
Synonym Usage
See yearn.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
pinesimple
-
pinessimple
-
have pinedperfect
-
has pinedperfect
-
am piningprogressive
-
are piningprogressive
-
is piningprogressive
-
have been piningperfect progressive
-
has been piningperfect progressive
Past
-
pinedsimple
-
had pinedperfect
-
was piningprogressive
-
were piningprogressive
-
had been piningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pine1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English pin(e), pigne, Old English pīntrēow “pine tree,” from Old French pin and Latin pīnus
Origin of pine2
First recorded before 900; Middle English pinen “to torture, torment, inflict pain, be in pain”; Old English pīnian “to torture,” derivative of pīn “torture” ( Middle English pine ), from Late Latin pēna, Latin poena “punishment”; see pain
Explanation
If you pine for someone, you desperately want to see them, be with them, or perhaps smother them with kisses. If you're texting your ex-boyfriend over 50 times a day, there's a pretty good chance that you still pine for him. In Old English, pine meant "to torture or cause to experience pain," which seems quite fitting if you've known what it's like to pine for something or someone. The verb pine should not be confused with the noun pine, as in the evergreen tree. If you are from the Northeast and find yourself living in the Caribbean, you may pine for the sight of a pine tree, but the lovely weather should ease the pain.
Vocabulary lists containing pine
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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.
See Examples For:
Here, Moore shows reverence not only for her own craft, but for all the hopeful idealists who pine to know what it feels like to lose yourself in someone, or something, else.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026
Maya and I spent a lot of time under a pine tree making fairy houses and using our imagination.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
Terpenes such as pinene from pine trees, for example, can participate in reactions that generate tiny airborne particles.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026
Its population of Torrey pine trees is one of just two spots in the U. S. where that species is found.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
Quick on his feet, he often dashed across the Jungfem Bridge and hid in the pine forest around the New Johannes cemetery.
From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
The website of the Bend-La Pine school district says:
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
"We are stunned and heartbroken by this senseless tragedy," said Bend-La Pine Schools Superintendent Steven Cook in a statement.
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
In 2021, an investor group led by Bay Pine LP acquired a majority stake in Mavis for $6 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
After the April community meeting, Falb and her mother exchanged contact information with other residents, eventually forming the Lone Pine Canyon Protection Alliance, with Falb serving as vice president and Unibe as secretary.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026
Pine trees wave as the train rushes past them.
From "What the Night Sings" by Vesper Stamper
She stopped in the middle of the woods during a walk, looked with disapproval at my light jacket, and threw her hands up in mock confusion, surveying the snow-encrusted pines.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
The area around present-day Shangri-La began to grow rich as Drolma’s family and other ethnic Tibetans jumped into harvesting the mushrooms, which grow naturally on the oaks and pines of the Eastern Himalayas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
When the largest fire recorded in the history of Channel Islands National Park erupted on Santa Rosa Island in May, observers feared for the park’s rare Torrey pines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
The coastline is lined with maritime pines, originally planted under Napoleon III to shield local villages from advancing dunes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
It was as if the people in this city with the tall whistling pines wanted to grab all they could before the war robbed them of choices.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
And during their down years, Knicks die-hards pined for LeBron James or Kevin Durant to ride in to the rescue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026
And you can expect more such details to surface as we finally get the Succession epilogue its fans have pined for, with a Tom Wambsgans type in charge.
From Slate ● Feb. 4, 2026
Yet he felt compelled to hold a news conference at the Bears training camp in Lake Forest, Ill., to explain why he pined for playing in, say, Minnesota.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2025
Mr. Butzel told The New York Times in 2000 that as a lawyer’s son he “felt obligated to be a lawyer, but it was nothing I pined to do.”
From New York Times ● Feb. 2, 2024
She pined away sitting on the ground out-of-doors where she could watch him, turning her face and following him with her eyes as he journeyed over the sky.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Before many learned Walter might be interested in selling the team quickly, Kushner and Iger, already pining for an NBA franchise, jumped at the opportunity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026
At that point, Lightbody was pining for a woman who'd rejected his advances.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026
The lack of a son’s POV makes Boy Mom pining both performative and disturbingly real.
From Salon ● Jun. 4, 2026
Investors have been pining to own SpaceX for years.
From Barron's ● May 24, 2026
The boys were ready, were proud to be able to help out the U.S. of A. and whatnot, although the chubby girlfriends and mothers admitted they’d be pining for their men.
From "Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet" by Joanne Proulx
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