Verb (1)pick peas and beans from the garden for dinner
I pick you as my partner
he seems to be trying to pick a fight
still suffering from the shock of his wife's death, he could do no more than pick halfheartedly at his food
continued to pick the block of ice until she was able to extract the shrimp Noun (1)
that team is my pick to win the Super Bowl
the pick of the contestants will go on to the next competition
you have first pick of your office mates for the softball team
in the days when corporal punishment was permissible, it was not uncommon for an inattentive student to get a sharp pick in the head with a blackboard pointer
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
In 2023, before Cooper Flagg was the top player in college basketball and the presumptive No. 1 pick in this year’s NBA Draft, New Balance Chief Marketing Officer Chris Davis issued an audacious challenge to one of his top lieutenants.—Justin Birnbaum, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025 In the process, the Suns acquired star guard Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in the 2024 draft, and five second-round picks.—Ricardo Klein, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 June 2025
Verb
Prosecutors say Abrego Garcia made more than 100 trips, typically transporting people within the country after picking them up in the Houston area.—Bart Jansen, USA Today, 14 June 2025 The Pacers know exactly how to pick his high-dribble pocket every time.—Mike Vorkunov, New York Times, 14 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for pick
Word History
Etymology
Verb (1)
Middle English piken, partly from Old English *pīcian (akin to Middle Dutch picken to prick); partly from Middle French piquer to prick — more at pike
Noun (2)
Middle English pik
Verb (2)
Middle English pykken to pitch (a tent); akin to Middle English picchen to pitch
Share