How is the word pine distinct from other similar verbs?
Some common synonyms of pine are hanker, hunger, long, thirst, and yearn. While all these words mean "to have a strong desire for something," pine implies a languishing or a fruitless longing for what is impossible.
pined for a lost love
In what contexts can hanker take the place of pine?
While in some cases nearly identical to pine, hanker suggests the uneasy promptings of unsatisfied appetite or desire.
always hankering for money
How do hunger and thirst relate to one another, in the sense of pine?
Both hunger and thirst imply an insistent or impatient craving or a compelling need.
hungered for a business of his own
thirsted for power
When can long be used instead of pine?
In some situations, the words long and pine are roughly equivalent. However, long implies a wishing with one's whole heart and often a striving to attain.
longed for some rest
Where would yearn be a reasonable alternative to pine?
The synonyms yearn and pine are sometimes interchangeable, but yearn suggests an eager, restless, or painful longing.
yearned for a stage career
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pineMeanwhile, a young Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Cameron James burned, pined, and perished for Kat's sister Bianca (Larisa Oleynik) — but was only allowed to date her if Kat found a suitor.—Danny Horn, EW.com, 31 Mar. 2025 This sunscreen is also gently fragranced with chamomile flower oil, gujju pine tree leaf oil, and artemisia wormwood extract for a small dose of refreshing aromatherapy.—Sarah Han, Allure, 3 Jan. 2025 In the summer of 2022, Zegler told red carpet interviewers that her version of the iconic princess wouldn’t spend her days pining over a man.—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 15 Mar. 2025 The father-son duo made headlines earlier this month while at a sneaker convention, with Sam — who turned 13 in February — pining over a pair of $6,000 Air Dior kicks.—Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 12 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for pine
The last quality marking the cinema of the rice cooker is yearning.
—
Lisa Wong Macabasco,
Vogue,
3 July 2025
The smattering of comparisons she’s been drawing to Leonard Cohen are apt for (and assuredly cherished by) the Vermont singer on her third album — the luminant vessel of a swarm of kinetic lyrical energy log jammed at the front gates of her mind, yearning for the page and demanding a romp.
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