pin down
verb
pinned down; pinning down; pins down
1
: to cause or force (someone) to make a definite statement or decision about something
Reporters tried to pin him down on the specific changes he wants to make to the tax laws.
2
: to find out (something) with certainty
Can you pin down when the change occurred?
I'm trying to pin the source of the problem down.
Examples of pin down in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The menu is impossible to pin down, following the veers of Nick Curtola’s mind.
—
Ligaya Mishan, New York Times, 11 May 2026
To get to the bottom of things, though, the team behind the new research examined the host galaxies and environments of LFBOTs to try to pin down what the progenitors of these explosive events could really be.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 8 May 2026
The same tone was struck in an Instagram ad recruiting agents, where DHS used a photo showing agents in tactical gear pinning down a protester who was never charged with a crime.
—Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 7 May 2026
Eileen is Hathaway perfectly in the pocket with her obsessions as a performer, melding her gifts for the exquisite and the dark while building a character who is never easy to pin down to a simple motive.
—Chris Feil, Vulture, 1 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for pin down
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Ligaya Mishan, New York Times, 11 May 2026
To get to the bottom of things, though, the team behind the new research examined the host galaxies and environments of LFBOTs to try to pin down what the progenitors of these explosive events could really be.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 8 May 2026
The same tone was struck in an Instagram ad recruiting agents, where DHS used a photo showing agents in tactical gear pinning down a protester who was never charged with a crime.
—Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 7 May 2026
Eileen is Hathaway perfectly in the pocket with her obsessions as a performer, melding her gifts for the exquisite and the dark while building a character who is never easy to pin down to a simple motive.
—Chris Feil, Vulture, 1 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for pin down
Cite this Entry
“Pin down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pin%20down. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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