vine
noun
any plant having a long, slender stem that trails or creeps on the ground or climbs by winding itself about a support or holding fast with tendrils or claspers.
vine
American
[vahyn]
/ vaɪn /
noun
-
vines
plural
-
any plant having a long, slender stem that trails or creeps on the ground or climbs by winding itself about a support or holding fast with tendrils or claspers.
-
the stem of any such plant.
-
a grape plant.
vine
1
British
/ vaɪn /
noun
-
any of various plants, esp the grapevine, having long flexible stems that creep along the ground or climb by clinging to a support by means of tendrils, leafstalks, etc
-
the stem of such a plant
Vine
2
British
/ vaɪn /
noun
vine
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of vine
1250–1300; Middle English < Old French vi ( g ) ne < Latin vīnea vine(yard), equivalent to vīn ( um ) wine + -ea, feminine of -eus -eous
Explanation
A vine is a plant that spreads by creeping along the ground or climbing up some kind of support. Grapes are one example of a vine, and ivy is another. The famous children's book Madeline takes place "in an old house in Paris that was covered with vines." Vines naturally trail along or climb trees, fences, and houses. The root of vine means "wine," and the original definition was "plant bearing grapes for making wine."
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:
Brushing his hand over crackling vine leaves, French winemaker Gregory Guibergia was relieved a wildfire only scorched the edge of his vineyard but he feared its smoke would ruin this year's vintage.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
“Because that is what we want. But we don’t invest in staff because we have a shortage. ... We can’t have joy and wellness if your people are drying on the vine because they’re exhausted.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 2026
As a result, McMullen says he’s leaving 30% of his fruit to rot on the vine this season.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 24, 2026
We do need to eliminate poverty for older Americans, but the answer lies in strengthening SSI, which has been allowed to wither on the vine.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 10, 2026
Dr. van Heerden, Dr. Masuku, and Nhamo sat outside the cookhouse in the shade of a bougainvillea vine.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
The tabloid Daily Mail's Sarah Vine blamed social media for amplifying the story.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
WSJ Leadership Institute’s Katie Deighton reports on the resurrection—sort of—of a much-missed social network: Remember Vine, the six-second Twitter-owned video app partially responsible for Logan Paul’s career?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
The team said Yates, Vine and Soler would be kept under observation by medical staff before travelling home in the coming days to recover.
From BBC ● May 10, 2026
The company, which is valued at $5 billion, is based in a glass-and-steel office building near the fabled intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2026
So the God of the Vine was born of fire and nursed by rain, the hard burning heat that ripens the grapes and the water that keeps the plant alive.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
The dogs’ sleeping quarters are modeled after the park’s Pirates of the Caribbean ride, with its fort-like corridors made of sun-dried brick, the walls strewn with overgrown jungle vines.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
The system, which was installed in 2013, is especially important for young vines, whose roots are not as deep.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
Earlier this year, he called 911 after seeing a man set fire to vines hanging from the freeway’s sound wall.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
Well-tended vines sink deep roots, and the heat stress "is actually good for them, making them go deeper, and put out more grapes," explained Luck.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
It had hand-shaped leaves and purple berries like the ones found on bramble vines.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
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.
