Main Entry:

¹pinch

Pronunciation:

\ˈpinch\

Function:

verb

Etymology:

Middle English, from Anglo-French *pincher, pincer

Date:

14th century

transitive verb1 a: to squeeze between the finger and thumb or between the jaws of an instrument b: to prune the tip of (a plant or shoot) usually to induce branching c: to squeeze or compress painfully d: to cause physical or mental pain to e (1): to cause to appear thin, haggard, or shrunken (2): to cause to shrivel or wither2 a: to subject to strict economy or want : straiten b: to restrain or limit narrowly : constrict3 a: steal b: arrest4: to sail too close to the windintransitive verb1: compress, squeeze2: to be miserly or closefisted3: to press painfully4: narrow, taper <the road pinched down to a trail — Cecelia Holland>

— pinch pennies

: to practice strict economy