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pick - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'pick' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Pick [ n.]
- A sharp-pointed tool for picking; -- often used in composition; as, a toothpick; a picklock.
- A heavy iron tool, curved and sometimes pointed at both ends, wielded by means of a wooden handle inserted in the middle, -- used by quarrymen, roadmakers, etc.; also, a pointed hammer used for dressing millstones.
- A pike or spike; the sharp point fixed in the center of a buckler.
- Choice; right of selection; as, to have one's pick.
- That which would be picked or chosen first; the best; as, the pick of the flock.
- A particle of ink or paper imbedded in the hollow of a letter, filling up its face, and occasioning a spot on a printed sheet.
- That which is picked in, as with a pointed pencil, to correct an unevenness in a picture.
- The blow which drives the shuttle, -- the rate of speed of a loom being reckoned as so many picks per minute; hence, in describing the fineness of a fabric, a weft thread; as, so many picks to an inch.
2 . Pick [ v.]
- To throw; to pitch.
- To peck at, as a bird with its beak; to strike at with anything pointed; to act upon with a pointed instrument; to pierce; to prick, as with a pin.
- To separate or open by means of a sharp point or points; as, to pick matted wool, cotton, oakum, etc.
- To open (a lock) as by a wire.
- To pull apart or away, especially with the fingers; to pluck; to gather, as fruit from a tree, flowers from the stalk, feathers from a fowl, etc.
- To remove something from with a pointed instrument, with the fingers, or with the teeth; as, to pick the teeth; to pick a bone; to pick a goose; to pick a pocket.
- To choose; to select; to separate as choice or desirable; to cull; as, to pick one's company; to pick one's way; -- often with out.
- To take up; esp., to gather from here and there; to collect; to bring together; as, to pick rags; -- often with up; as, to pick up a ball or stones; to pick up information.
- To trim.
3 . Pick [ v. i.]
- To eat slowly, sparingly, or by morsels; to nibble.
- To do anything nicely or carefully, or by attending to small things; to select something with care.
- To steal; to pilfer.

Meaning of 'pick' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . pick [ n]
Meaning (1):
- the quantity of a crop that is harvested
Example in sentence:
  • he sent the first picking of berries to the market;
  • it was the biggest peach pick in years
Meaning (2):
- a thin sharp implement used for removing unwanted material
Example in sentence:
  • he used a pick to clean the dirt out of the cracks
Meaning (3):
- a basketball maneuver; obstructing an opponent with one's body
Example in sentence:
  • he was called for setting an illegal pick
Meaning (4):
- the person or thing chosen or selected
Example in sentence:
  • he was my pick for mayor
Meaning (5):
- the best people or things in a group
Example in sentence:
  • the cream of England's young men were killed in the Great War
Meaning (6):
- a heavy iron tool with a wooden handle and a curved head that is pointed on both ends
Example in sentence:
  • they used picks and sledges to break the rocks
Meaning (7):
- the act of choosing or selecting
Example in sentence:
  • you can take your pick;
  • your choice of colors was unfortunate
8 . pick [ v]
Meaning (8):
- remove unwanted substances from, such as feathers or pits
Example in sentence:
  • Clean the turkey
Meaning (9):
- harass with constant criticism
Example in sentence:
  • Don't always pick on your little brother
Meaning (10):
- pay for something
Example in sentence:
  • foot the bill;
  • pick up the burden of high-interest mortgages;
  • pick up the tab
Meaning (11):
- select carefully from a group
Example in sentence:
  • He picked his way carefully;
  • She finally picked her successor
Meaning (12):
- eat intermittently; take small bites of
Example in sentence:
  • He pieced at the sandwich all morning;
  • She never eats a full meal--she just nibbles
Meaning (13):
- pull lightly but sharply with a plucking motion
Example in sentence:
  • he plucked the strings of his mandolin
Meaning (14):
- provoke
Example in sentence:
  • pick a fight or a quarrel
Meaning (15):
- look for and gather
Example in sentence:
  • pick flowers;
  • pick mushrooms
Meaning (16):
- remove in small bits
Example in sentence:
  • pick meat from a bone
Meaning (17):
- attack with or as if with a pickaxe of ice or rocky ground, for example
Example in sentence:
  • Pick open the ice
Meaning (18):
- pilfer or rob
Example in sentence:
  • pick pockets

Nearby Words:

pic pica picador picamar picapare picard picaresque picariae picarian picaroon

See 'pick' also in:

Dictionary.com Google Translator Wikipedia.com Merriam Webster

Related Definitions

  • Picketing
    Picketing- having employees carry signs announcing their concerns near the employer’s place of business, is one of the first activities to occur during a strike.

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