pinch
/pɪnt͡ʃ/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.76 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
verb
To squeeze between the thumb and forefinger.
verb
To sail so close-hauled that the sails begin to flutter.
Example Sentences
- "The children were scolded for pinching each other."
- "This shoe pinches my foot."
- "He took the plate in his hand, holding it between thumb and forefinger at one corner, letting it hang down. With the other hand he pinched it at the opposite corner, pressing thumb and forefinger together tightly."
- "Since the resistance of the channel is inversely proportional to its width, the most resistive region is the one pinched between the gates where they come closest to each other."
- "With their jock-straps pinching, they slouch to attention While queueing for sarnies at the office canteen."
- "Someone has pinched my handkerchief!"
Etymology
From Middle English pinchen, from Old Northern French *pinchier (compare Old French pincier, pincer (“to pinch”)), a word of uncertain origin, possibly from Vulgar Latin *pinciāre (“to puncture, pinch”), from a merger of *punctiāre (“to puncture, sting”), from Latin punctiō (“a puncture, prick”) and *piccāre (“to strike, sting”), from Frankish *pikkōn, from Proto-Germanic *pikkōną (“to pick, peck, prick”). More at point, pick and pitch.