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
For her, the mere fact that the band shifted its sound from record to record and wasn’t easy to pin down made a major impression.
—
David Browne, Rolling Stone, 10 May 2024
Hoping to pin down the truth of this squirrel-human transmission, Schuenemann and a team of researchers turned to the medieval city of Winchester in England.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 3 May 2024
Anaïs Demoustier stars as a journalist attempting to pin down the eccentric and elusive Salvador Dalí, who is played by five different actors, Edouard Baer, Jonathan Cohen, Gilles Lellouche, Pio Marmaï, and Didier Flamand.
—Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 2 May 2024
Garvey would be a Republican candidate whose political identity was tough to pin down, an important asset in deep blue California.
—David Lightman, Sacramento Bee, 23 Apr. 2024
Another finds Kid trapped in an elevator with an enemy, holding a knife between his teeth to strike back while his hands are pinned down.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 5 Apr. 2024
Even so, the definition of a flying car is a little hard to pin down.
—Christopher Elliott, USA TODAY, 5 Apr. 2024
As one man pins down a panicked animal, another cuts away the plastic deeply embedded in its neck.
—Cara Buckley, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2024
Macdonald had to use her whole body to pin down the squirming shark.
—Linda Robertson, Miami Herald, 27 Mar. 2024
David Browne, Rolling Stone, 10 May 2024
Hoping to pin down the truth of this squirrel-human transmission, Schuenemann and a team of researchers turned to the medieval city of Winchester in England.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 3 May 2024
Anaïs Demoustier stars as a journalist attempting to pin down the eccentric and elusive Salvador Dalí, who is played by five different actors, Edouard Baer, Jonathan Cohen, Gilles Lellouche, Pio Marmaï, and Didier Flamand.
—Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 2 May 2024
Garvey would be a Republican candidate whose political identity was tough to pin down, an important asset in deep blue California.
—David Lightman, Sacramento Bee, 23 Apr. 2024
Another finds Kid trapped in an elevator with an enemy, holding a knife between his teeth to strike back while his hands are pinned down.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 5 Apr. 2024
Even so, the definition of a flying car is a little hard to pin down.
—Christopher Elliott, USA TODAY, 5 Apr. 2024
As one man pins down a panicked animal, another cuts away the plastic deeply embedded in its neck.
—Cara Buckley, New York Times, 26 Mar. 2024
Macdonald had to use her whole body to pin down the squirming shark.
—Linda Robertson, Miami Herald, 27 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pin down.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near pin down
Cite this Entry
“Pin down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pin%20down. Accessed 14 May. 2024.
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