pinhead

noun

pin·​head ˈpin-ˌhed How to pronounce pinhead (audio)
1
: the head of a pin
2
: something very small or insignificant
3
: a very dull or stupid person : fool

Examples of pinhead in a Sentence

The insect is the size of a pinhead. Her boss is a real pinhead.
Recent Examples on the Web The eggs are about the size of a pinhead, according to Candace Fallon, senior conservation biologist at the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, said. Aliza Chasan, CBS News, 7 June 2024 These sorts of deals sometimes happened between two drunk pinheads in a tent in the evening, sipping gin and getting a map out and drawing lines across a map. Foreign Affairs, 15 Dec. 2014 Below this sieve is a fine-mesh sieve that captures fossil bits down to 0.02 inch in size (smaller than a pinhead). Kristina A. Curry Rogers, Scientific American, 21 Sep. 2020 The beads were about the size of pinheads, and archaeologists had to remove each one from the soil block using tweezers. Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Oct. 2023 The X-ray object was located to somewhere inside the white circle, which is about the size a pinhead 100m away would appear. Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 7 Sep. 2023 Some might deliberately avoid seeing the political dread of E3, using the pinhead excuse that director Antoine Fuqua is a not consciously political filmmaker. Armond White, National Review, 1 Sep. 2023 Ascher previously directed the doc Room 237, a pinhead exegesis of Kubrick’s The Shining, which typifies how few critics or film professionals appreciate what surrealism is or its wit. Armond White, National Review, 7 June 2023 Aphids — which are about the size of a pinhead — invaded pecan trees. Sarah Bahari, Dallas News, 18 Oct. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pinhead.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1593, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of pinhead was in 1593

Dictionary Entries Near pinhead

Cite this Entry

“Pinhead.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pinhead. Accessed 17 Jun. 2024.

Kids Definition

pinhead

noun
pin·​head ˈpin-ˌhed How to pronounce pinhead (audio)
1
: the head of a pin
2
: a very dull or stupid person : fool
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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