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pinch

/pɪnt͡ʃ/noun, verb1 syllable

Pinch means: make off with belongings of others.

Synonyms for pinch49

noun, as in a slight but appreciable amount

touch, hint, tinge, mite, jot, speck, soupcon

noun, as in the act of apprehending (especially apprehending a criminal)

apprehension, arrest, catch, collar, taking into custody

noun, as in a sudden unforeseen crisis (usually involving danger) that requires immediate action

emergency, exigency

noun, as in a small sharp bite or snip

noun, as in a squeeze with the fingers

tweak

verb, as in make off with belongings of others

pilfer, cabbage, purloin, abstract, snarf, swipe, hook, sneak, filch, nobble, lift

verb, as in squeeze tightly between the fingers

squeeze, twinge, tweet, nip, twitch

verb, as in make ridges into by pinching together

crimp

verb, as in cut the top off

verb, as in irritate as if by a nip, pinch, or tear

vellicate

also used for pinch

crib, steal, abduct, appropriate, bag, bandit, bash and grab, bone, bust, nick, apprehend, begripe, capture, fang, grasp

Includes material from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

What does pinch mean?12

verb

1

make off with belongings of others

2

squeeze tightly between the fingers“He pinched her behind”

3

make ridges into by pinching together

4

cut the top off“top trees and bushes”

5

irritate as if by a nip, pinch, or tear“smooth surfaces can vellicate the teeth”

noun

1

a slight but appreciable amount“this dish could use a touch of garlic”

2

the act of apprehending (especially apprehending a criminal)“the policeman on the beat got credit for the collar”

3

a sudden unforeseen crisis (usually involving danger) that requires immediate action“he never knew what to do in an emergency”

4

a small sharp bite or snip

5

a squeeze with the fingers

6

a painful or straitened circumstance“the pinch of the recession”

7

an injury resulting from getting some body part squeezed

Definitions from the Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

What rhymes with pinch?5

one syllable

inchlynchfinchclinchwinch
Show 40 near rhymes

Pinch in a sentence

  • In a pinch, a vegetable peeler can act as a zester.papabear
  • At a pinch, one could say that he is a good president!unknown
  • Add salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg.CK
  • While frying the egg, add a pinch of salt.Nylez
  • How careless he was to pinch his fingers in the door!CM
  • You should take his words with a pinch of salt.sundown
  • This will come in handy in a pinch.CM
  • A pinch hitter was brought into action in the last inning.CM

Sentences from Tatoeba, CC BY 2.0 FR, credited to their authors.

Forms of pinch

as a noun

plural
pinches

as a verb

past tense
pinched
present participle
pinching
third-person singular
pinches
past participle
pinched