pinup

Or pin-up

[pin-uhp]

noun

1. a large photograph, as of a sexually attractive person, suitable for pinning on a wall.

2. a person in such a photograph.

3. a device or fixture that is fastened to a wall, as a lamp.

adjective

1. of, relating to, or appearing in a pinup.

   a pinup girl.

2. designed or suitable for hanging or fastening on a wall.

   a pinup lamp.

Word History and Origins

Origin of pinup¹

1670–80 for general senses; 1940–45 as photograph of a pretty woman; noun, adj. use of pin up

Example Sentences

That she was more than a pinup was not even then a secret — a Life magazine cover story at the time of “Rock Hunter” called her “Broadway’s smartest dumb blonde.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

North, too, had his moment as a teenage pinup.

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Beyoncé, calls her while Gaga sits in curlers made of Coke cans, a nod to vintage pinup aesthetics.

Read more on Salon

They just see that I don’t drink, don’t smoke and have aged out of being a pinup.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Her pinup posters rivaled those of Farrah Fawcett, decorating taverns, dorms, locker rooms, the closets of janitors and the garages of boys who started bands and worked on cars.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• image 
• likeness 
• photo 
• picture 
• portrait 
• print 
• snapshot