pine

1 of 2

noun

often attributive
1
: any of a genus (Pinus of the family Pinaceae, the pine family) of coniferous evergreen trees that have slender elongated needles and include some valuable timber trees and ornamentals
2
: the straight-grained white or yellow usually durable and resinous wood of a pine varying from extreme softness in the white pine to hardness in the longleaf pine
3
: any of various Australian coniferous trees (as of the genera Callitris or Araucaria)
4
5
piney adjective
or less commonly piny

pine

2 of 2

verb

pined; pining

intransitive verb

1
: to lose vigor, health, or flesh (as through grief) : languish
2
: to yearn intensely and persistently especially for something unattainable
they still pined for their lost wealth
Choose the Right Synonym for pine

long, yearn, hanker, pine, hunger, thirst mean to have a strong desire for something.

long implies a wishing with one's whole heart and often a striving to attain.

longed for some rest

yearn suggests an eager, restless, or painful longing.

yearned for a stage career

hanker suggests the uneasy promptings of unsatisfied appetite or desire.

always hankering for money

pine implies a languishing or a fruitless longing for what is impossible.

pined for a lost love

hunger and thirst imply an insistent or impatient craving or a compelling need.

hungered for a business of his own
thirsted for power

Examples of pine in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
There’s an opportunity to help monitor white-bark pine forests for disease, pests and climate impacts in Nevada ($18 an hour), and another to build and maintain trails in New Hampshire’s White Mountains ($19 an hour). Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2024 Scuttling under the pines at a plantation in the highlands of Tanzania, a long critter took a step. Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 18 Apr. 2024 Standing way back in the pines on the only hole Augusta National lengthened for this Masters stood a towering man with a baby face and a naive disposition. Jordan Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 12 Apr. 2024 The out-and-back trail is almost seven miles long and passes through open meadows, dense pine forest, and along the river, in addition to taking hikers to a beautiful cascade that tumbles onto pure granite rock. Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 8 Apr. 2024 Visitors can enjoy a mesmerizing display of towering red rocks in contrast with the deep green pine forests and the expanse of Arizona's usual blue skies from the numerous lookout points throughout the park. Laura Daniella Sepulveda, The Arizona Republic, 8 Mar. 2024 Crystal Lake Recreation Area, a camping destination in the San Gabriel Mountains, will be closed April 9-14 while trees are sprayed with a pesticide to protect them from the Western pine beetle, forest officials announced Sunday. Adam Elmahrek, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2024 Those seedlings were of no use in the mountainous and coastal West, with its cedars, firs and Ponderosa pines. Lydia Depillis, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2024 The spears and other tools were carved from spruce, larch, and pine, species that grew many kilometers away from the lake and combined hardness with elasticity. Byandrew Curry, science.org, 1 Apr. 2024
Verb
And fans are either pining to go back to the good old days of amateurism (not going to happen) or rooting for the world to burn so that their favorite school can buy the next star quarterback. Dan Wolken, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2024 And pining wistfully for that special girl waiting at home. Lee Hutchinson, Ars Technica, 29 Jan. 2024 But instead of pining over what could've been, Derulo got to work. Daniela Avila, Peoplemag, 23 June 2023 As the human workers pine for home, the humanoid workers increasingly pine to be more than what they’ve been programmed to be. Kate Knibbs, WIRED, 26 Dec. 2022 After years of pining, Iaconetti eventually got the guy: the two wed in 2019 and share a son. Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 27 June 2023 Cariuma sneakers frequently rack up long waitlists, most recently ringing in at 77,000 customers who were pining to get their hands on the Oca Low style, according to the brand. Claire Harmeyer, Peoplemag, 14 Mar. 2023 Russia is pining to build on its budding relationship with American conservatives—literally. Prem Thakker, The New Republic, 12 May 2023 Chainsaws and demons, enormously fat dragons, lovelorn video game bosses pining over princesses. Erik Kain, Forbes, 21 Apr. 2023

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

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English pīn, from Latin pinus; probably akin to Greek pitys pine

Verb

Middle English, from Old English pīnian to suffer, from *pīn punishment, from Latin poena — more at pain entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of pine was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near pine

Cite this Entry

“Pine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pine. Accessed 27 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

pine

1 of 2 verb
pined; pining
1
: to lose energy, health, or weight through grief, worry, or distress
pine away
2
: to long for very much

pine

2 of 2 noun
1
: any of a genus of evergreen trees that have narrow needles for leaves, cones, and wood ranging from very soft to hard and that include valuable timber trees as well as many ornamentals
2
: the white or yellow wood of a pine
piney adjective
also piny
ˈpī-nē

Medical Definition

pine

1 of 2 noun
: any tree of the genus Pinus

pine

2 of 2 noun
: a dietary deficiency disease of sheep or cattle marked by anemia, malnutrition, and general debility
specifically : such a disease due to cobalt deficiency compare morton mains disease

More from Merriam-Webster on pine

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