See: TAKE WITH A GRAIN OF SALT also TAKE WITH A PINCH OF SALT,
WHERE THE SHOE PINCHES.
[pinch and scrape]
{v. phr.} To save as much money as possible by
spending as little as possible. •/They are trying to buy their first house so
they are pinching and scraping every penny they can./
[pinch-hit]
{v.} 1. To substitute for another player at bat in a
baseball game. •/Smith was sent in to pinch-hit for Jones./ 2.
{informal} To act for a while, or in an emergency, for another person; take
someone’s place for a while. •/I asked him to pinch-hit for me while I was
away./ •/The president of the City Council pinch-hits for the mayor when
the mayor is out of town./ — [pinch-hitter]{n.} •/Jones was hit
by a pitched ball and Smith came in as a pinch-hitter./ •/When our teacher
was sick, Mrs. Harris was called as a pinch-hitter./ — [pinch-hitting]{adj.} or {n.} •/Pinch-hitting for another teacher is a hard job./
[pinch pennies]
{v. phr.}, {informal} Not spend a penny more than
necessary; be very saving or thrifty. •/When Tom and Mary were saving money
to buy a house, they had to pinch pennies./ — [penny-pincher]{n.},
{informal} A stingy or selfish person; miser. •/He spent so little money
that he began to get the name of a penny-pincher./ — [penny-pinching]{adj.} or {n.}, {informal} •/Bob saved enough money by
penny-pinching to buy a bicycle./
[pin curl]
{n.} A curl made with a hair clip or bobby pin. •/Mary
washed her hair and put it up in pin curls./ •/All the girls had their hair
in pin curls to get ready for the party./
[pin down]
{v.} 1a. To keep (someone) from moving; make stay in a place
or position; trap. •/Mr. Jones' leg was pinned down under the car after the
accident./ •/The soldier was pinned down in the hole because rifle bullets
were flying over his head./ 1b. To keep (someone) from changing what (he)
says or means; make (someone) admit the truth; make (someone) agree to
something. •/Mary didn’t like the book but I couldn’t pin her down to say
what she didn’t like about it./ •/I tried to pin Bob down to fix my bicycle
tomorrow, but he wouldn’t say that he could./ 2. To tell clearly and exactly;
explain so that there is no doubt. •/The police tried to pin down the blame
for the fire in the school./
[pine away]
{v. phr.} To waste away with grief. •/After George was
sent abroad, his wife pined away for him so much that she became ill./
[pink]
See: IN THE PINK, TICKLE PINK.
[pink around the gills]
See: GREEN AROUND THE GILLS.
[pin money]
{n. phr.} Extra money used for incidentals. •/She has a
regular full-time job but she earns extra pin money by doing a lot of
baby-sitting./
[pin one’s ears back]
{v. phr.}, {slang} 1. To beat; defeat.
•/After winning three games in a row, the Reds had their ears pinned back by
the Blues./ 2. To scold. •/Mrs. Smith pinned Mary’s ears back for not doing
her homework./
[pin one’s faith on]
{v. phr.} To depend upon; trust. •/We pinned our
faith on our home basketball team to win the state finals, and they did!/