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We are not opining—that is, expressing our opinion—when we say that opine is not a back-formation of opinion, though the two words do share a common ancestry. A back-formation is a word formed by the subtraction of part of an existing word; for instance, the verb bartend is a back-formation of the noun bartender. Opine and opinion, however, both entered English independently, taking different routes from their mutual roots in the Latin verb opīnārī, meaning “to have in mind” or “to think.” Opinion arrived in the 14th century, while opine followed about a century later.
Examples of opine in a Sentence
Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 14 May 2026
The prosecutor also asked W to opine as to whether certain hypothetical facts, which closely resembled the facts in the cases involving P and C, were consistent with grooming behavior.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 9 May 2026
Hood opined that the non-endorsement could have come down to the open-endedness of who could win.
—Molly Parks, The Washington Examiner, 9 May 2026
The way that some musicians can innately pick up a rhythm, Stewart opined, is the way that concepts in football click in York’s brain.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 8 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for opine
Cite this Entry
“Opine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/opine. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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