Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words
1

fine

play
noun \ ˈfīn \

Definition of fine

1 obsolete :end, conclusion
2 :a compromise of a fictitious suit used as a form of conveyance of lands
3 a :a sum imposed as punishment for an offense
  • The motorist had to pay a fine for speeding.
b :a forfeiture or penalty paid to an injured party in a civil action
— in fine
:in short

From the M-W Editors

budget
9 Financial Words With Surprising Origins
image1644821030
These Are Fighting Words
alt-59c448f88ea38
Trending: Kim Jong Un: Trump a 'Dotard'
video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Origin and Etymology of fine

Middle English, from Anglo-French fin, fine, from Latin finis boundary, end

2

fine

verb

Definition of fine

fined; fining
transitive verb
:to impose a fine on :punish by a fine

Origin and Etymology of fine

see 1fine

3

fine

adjective

Definition of fine

finer; finest
1 a :free from impurity
b of a metal :having a stated proportion of pure metal in the composition expressed in parts per thousand
  • a gold coin .9166 fine
2 a (1) :very thin in gauge or texture
  • fine thread
(2) :not coarse
  • fine sand
(3) :very small
  • fine print
(4) :keen
  • a knife with a fine edge
(5) :very precise or accurate
  • a fine adjustment
  • trying to be too fine with his pitches
b :physically trained or hardened close to the limit of efficiency —used of an athlete or animal
3 :delicate, subtle, or sensitive in quality, perception, or discrimination
  • a fine distinction
4 :superior in kind, quality, or appearance :excellent
  • a fine job
  • a fine day
  • fine wines
5 a :ornate 1
  • fine writing
b :marked by or affecting elegance or refinement
  • fine manners
6 a :very well
  • feel fine
b :all right
  • that's fine with me
7 —used as an intensive
  • the leader, in a fine frenzy, beheaded one of his wives
  • —Brian Crozier
—

fineness

play \ˈfīn-nəs\ noun

See fine defined for English-language learners

Examples of fine in a Sentence

  1. “Is there anything wrong?” “No, everything's fine.”

  2. The house looks fine to me.

  3. I think that's a fine idea.

  4. You did a fine job.

  5. The house is in fine shape.

  6. This is a fine example of what can go wrong when one person is given too much power.

  7. He's a fine young man.

  8. “Did you hurt yourself?” “No, I'm fine.”

Origin and Etymology of fine

Middle English fin, from Anglo-French, from Latin finis, noun, end, limit

fine Synonyms

Synonyms
dusty, floury, powdery
Antonyms
coarse, grainy, granular, granulated
Related Words
smooth; filtered, pulverized, refined; superfine, ultrafine
Near Antonyms
rough; unfiltered, unrefined; gravelly, gritty, sandy; pebbly, rocky, stony (also stoney); lumpy, mealy
4

fine

adverb

Definition of fine

1 :finely: such as
a :very well
b :all right
2 :with a very narrow margin of time or space
  • she had not intended to cut her escape so fine
  • —Melinda Beck et al.

See fine defined for English-language learners

Examples of fine in a Sentence

  1. She did fine on the test.

  2. My mother is doing fine, thank you.

  3. This'll do fine for now.

  4. She talks and walks so fine, just like a great lady.

First Known Use of fine

15th century

fine Synonyms

Synonyms
acceptably, adequately, all right, alright, creditably, decently, well, good, middlingly, nicely, OK (or okay), passably, respectably, satisfactorily, serviceably, so-so, sufficiently, tolerably
Antonyms
bad, badly, deficiently, ill, inadequately, insufficiently, intolerably, poorly, unacceptably, unsatisfactorily
Related Words
appropriately, aptly, congruously, correctly, decorously, felicitously, fittingly, happily, meetly, rightly, seemly, suitably; gratifyingly, satisfyingly; effectively, effectually, efficiently, neatly, tidily
Near Antonyms
unbearably; inappropriately, incorrectly, indecently, unsuitably; awfully, deplorably, disastrously, dreadfully, horrendously, horribly, horridly, miserably, terribly
5

fine

verb

Definition of fine

fined; fining
transitive verb
1 :purify, clarify
  • fine and filter wine
2 :to make finer in quality or size
intransitive verb
1 :to become pure or clear
  • the ale will fine
2 :to become smaller in lines or proportions

First Known Use of fine

14th century

6

fine

play
noun fi·ne \ ˈfē-(ˌ)nā \

Definition of fine

:end —used as a direction in music to mark the closing point after a repeat

Origin and Etymology of fine

Italian, from Latin finis end

Phrases Related to FINE

Related Phrases

FINE Defined for English Language Learners

fine

adjective

Definition of fine for English Language Learners

  • : good, acceptable, or satisfactory

  • —used in an ironic way to refer to things that are not good or acceptable

  • : very good

fine

adverb

Definition of fine for English Language Learners

  • : not badly or poorly : well enough

  • : in an elegant and graceful way

  • : in small pieces

FINE Defined for Kids

1

fine

play
noun \ ˈfīn \

Definition of fine for Students

:a sum of money to be paid as a punishment
2

fine

verb

Definition of fine for Students

fined; fining
:to punish by requiring payment of a sum of money
3

fine

adjective

Definition of fine for Students

finer; finest
1 :very good in quality or appearance
  • a fine swimmer
  • a fine garden
2 :satisfactory
  • That's fine with me.
3 :very small or thin
  • fine print
4 :made up of very small pieces
  • fine sand
—

finely

adverb
  • finely dressed
  • finely ground pepper
—

fineness

noun
4

fine

adverb

Definition of fine for Students

:very well
  • I'm doing fine.

Medical Dictionary

fine

play
adjective \ ˈfīn \

medical Definition of fine

finer; finest
of bodily tremors
:of slight excursion

Law Dictionary

1

fine

noun

legal Definition of fine

1 :a sum imposed as punishment for an offense — compare restitution
2 :a forfeiture or penalty paid to an injured party in a civil action

Origin and Etymology of fine

Anglo-French fin, fine & Medieval Latin finis end, boundary, agreement, payment for release or privilege, monetary penalty, from Latin finis end, boundary

2

fine

transitive verb

legal Definition of fine

fined; fining
:to impose a fine on :punish by fine

Learn More about fine

  1. See words that rhyme with fine Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for fine Spanish Central: Translation of fine Nglish: Translation of fine for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of fine for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about fine

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up fine? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

yeasty

play

of yeast or being unsettled or frivolous

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. dotage, dotard a state or period of senile decay

  2. otherwise "in other respects"

  3. federalism Graham says bill gives power to states

  4. bodega "Don’t mess with the beloved bodega."

  5. carceral Of, relating to, or suggesting a jail or prison

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

fine

Test Your Vocabulary

Merriam-Webster's New Words Quiz—Fall 2017 Edition!

  • young-plant-shoots
  • Which of the following is a new sense of the word bunny?
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Dictionary Devil

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-59c4207ecf106
Let's Talk 'Tea'

Spill it, sip it: just make it hot.

image1644821030
8 Words and Phrases from Boxing and Wrestling

Common terms that come from boxing and wrestling

alt-59c2960017c94
The Ambiguity of Pushing 'Up' and 'Back'

When you push a meeting, where does it go?

image536372841
Silent Letters

When each letter can be seen but not heard

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

young-plant-shoots
Merriam-Webster's New Words Quiz—Fall 2017 Edition!

You're going to have to memorize the dictionary again.

Take the quiz
stylized-drawing-of-woman-pole-vaulting-across-gap-to-get-trophy
Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

No tricks, just difficult words.

Take the quiz
Spell It
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Take the quiz
Dictionary Devil
Dictionary Devil

The dictionary has been scrambled—can you put it back together?

Play the game
Examples: fine in a Sentence