n.1. a. A short, straight, stiff piece of wire with a blunt head and a sharp point, used especially for fastening.
b. Something, such as a safety pin, that resembles such a piece of wire in shape or use.
c. A whit; a jot: didn't care a pin about the matter.
2. A slender, usually cylindrical piece of wood or metal for holding or fastening parts together, or serving as a support for suspending one thing from another, as:
a. A thin rod for securing the ends of fractured bones.
b. A peg for fixing the crown to the root of a tooth.
c. A cotter pin.
d. The part of a key stem entering a lock.
e. Music One of the pegs securing the strings and regulating their tension on a stringed instrument.
f. Nautical A belaying pin.
g. Nautical A thole pin.
3. An ornament fastened to clothing by means of a clasp.
4. A rolling pin.
5. Sports a. One of the wooden clubs at which the ball is aimed in bowling.
b. A flagstick.
6. pins Informal The legs: is steady on his pins.
7. Electronics A lead on a device that plugs into a socket to connect the device to a system.
8. Computers a. Any of the pegs on the platen of a printer, which engage holes at the edges of paper.
b. Any of the styluses that form a dot matrix on a printer.
c. Any of the small metal prongs at the end of a connector that fit into the holes in a port.
tr.v. pinned,
pin·ning,
pins 1. To fasten or secure with or as if with a pin or pins.
2. To transfix.
3. To place in a position of trusting dependence: He pinned his faith on an absurdity.
4. a. To hold fast; immobilize: He was pinned under the wreckage of the truck.
b. Sports To win a fall from in wrestling.
5. To give (a woman) a fraternity pin in token of attachment.
pin down1. To fix or establish clearly: She pinned down the cause of the accident.
2. To force (someone) to give firm opinions or precise information: The reporter pinned the governor down on the issue of taxes.