I. ˈpik verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English piken, partly from Middle French piquer to prick, pick, pluck, strike & partly from (assumed) Old English pīcian to prick (whence Old English pīcung pricking); akin to Middle Dutch picken, pecken to prick, hoe, pick, Old Norse pikka to peck, hack — more at pike (weapon)
transitive verb
1. : to pierce, penetrate, or break up with a pointed instrument
picking the hard clay
pick the surface of a millstone
2. : to remove covering or adhering matter from bit by bit
picked the bones clean
specifically : to remove feathers from
pick a goose
3.
a. : to separate and remove with the fingers or fingertips : pluck
picking flowers for the table
b. : to take lightly, neatly, or selectively : cull
picking only the ripest berries
c. : to gather one by one or bit by bit
pick apples
pick rags
d. : to take needed sorts from (standing type)
if you pick this form chalk the chase
4. : to select from among a group : choose , name
attempts to pick an exact synonym — Johnson O'Connor
tried to pick the shortest route
picked his way cautiously through the swamp
picked a winner in the next race
5. : to take the contents of (as a pocket) by stealth
suspected of picking pockets
skilled at picking the brains of his associates
6. : to seek and find occasion for : provoke deliberately
pick a quarrel
7.
a. : to dig into or pull lightly at with fingertips or fingernails or a pointed instrument
picking his teeth with a knife
picked the shoestring until it came untied
b. : to pluck (the strings of a stringed musical instrument) with a plectrum or with the fingers to cause vibrations ; also : to play music on (a stringed instrument)
reputed to pick a mighty mean guitar — G.S.Perry
c. : to loosen or pull apart with a sharp point
pick wool
pick oakum
8. : to turn (a lock) with a wire or a pointed tool instead of the key especially with intent to steal
9.
a. of a bird
(1) : to strike with the bill
cruelly picked by the stronger chicks
(2) : to take up (food) with the bill
b. : to eat sparingly or mincingly
10. : to cause (bits of the surface of paper) to stick to type and be pulled off — used of ink
11. : to finish (an edge of cloth) with a line of fine running stitches parallel to the edge
pocket flaps picked by hand
intransitive verb
1. : to use or work with a pick or pickax
2. : to gather something from a plant : harvest
the picking season
fruit ripe for picking
3. : pilfer , filch — used chiefly in the phrase picking and stealing
4.
a. of a bird : to strike or take things up with the bill
chickens picking about the yard
b. : to eat sparingly or mincingly : eat with little appetite
picking listlessly at his dinner
5. : to lose bits of the surface by adhesion to the inked form during printing — used of paper
•
- pick a hole in
- pick and choose
- pick at
- pick on
II. noun
( -s )
1. : a blow or stroke with a pointed instrument
2.
a. : the act of choosing or selecting : right or privilege of selection : choice
had the pick of several jobs
here are several brands, take your pick
b. : something that is or would be chosen first : the best or choicest part or member
the pick of the herd
the pick of the rebel forces
3. dialect
a. : the taking of a bit of food : peck
b. : a scanty meal
c. : a little bit : scrap
4. : the portion or quantity of a crop gathered at one time : picking
biggest berry pick in several years
the first pick of peaches
5. : something that is picked in with a point or pointed pencil
6.
a. : a particle (as of hardened ink, dirt, or paper) embedded in the hollow of a letter and causing a spot on a printed sheet ; also : the spot so caused
b. : a burr on the face of a plate or cut or of newly cast type
c. : the tendency of paper to pick
7. : a maneuver (as in basketball) for cutting off a player from the play : screen
III. adjective
Etymology: pick (II)
: picked , best
handed out the new guns to the pick rifle shots of his crew — F.B.Gipson
IV. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English pykken, alteration of picchen pitch, verb
transitive verb
1. obsolete : to set up or fix in place (as a tent)
2.
a. chiefly dialect : to throw or thrust with effort : hurl
high as I could pick my lance — Shakespeare
b. : pitch
time to pick the hay
3. dialect : to give birth to prematurely
4. : to throw (a shuttle) across the loom
intransitive verb
1. dialect England : to fall or topple forward
2. : to throw the shuttle across the loom
V. noun
( -s )
1. dialect England
a. : the act of pitching or throwing : cast
b. : something that is thrown
2.
a. : a throw of the shuttle — used especially in calculating the speed of a loom
so many picks per minute
b. : one filling thread — used especially in describing the fineness of a fabric
so many picks to an inch
VI. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English pik, probably alteration of pike (I)
1. obsolete
a. : pike
b. : a sharp point : spike
2. : a heavy iron or steel tool pointed at one or both ends and often curved, wielded by means of a wooden handle inserted in an eye between the ends, and used by quarrymen, roadmakers, miners, and stonecutters
3. dialect Britain : any of various pointed or pronged implements: as
a. : pitchfork
b. : gaff
4. : a sharp-pointed instrument for picking: as
a. : toothpick
b. : picklock
c. : plectrum 1
5. dialect England : a diamond in playing cards
6. : one of the points on the forepart of a figure skate blade
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VII.
dialect
variant of pique
VIII. transitive verb
: to obtain useful information from by questioning — used in such phrases as pick the brains of
IX. noun
: a comb with long widely spaced teeth used to give height to a hairstyle