Word of the Day

: September 16, 2009

pink

verb PINK

What It Means

1 a : to perforate in an ornamental pattern

b : to cut a saw-toothed edge on

2 a : pierce, stab

b : to wound by irony, criticism, or ridicule

pink in Context

"The sleek curtain requires no sewing; we pinked the edges to add a bit of detail." (Jennie Voorhees, Martha Stewart Living, April 2002)

Did You Know?

Our unabridged dictionary, Webster's Third New International, includes 13 distinct entries for "pink," whereas our abridged volume, Merriam-Webster's Collegiate, satisfies itself with the five most common. (Words get distinct entries in our dictionaries when they have different etymologies or different parts of speech.) Today's "pink," the only verb of the five, is from a Middle English word meaning "to thrust." Of the remaining four, the only "pink" older than the verb (which dates to 1503) is a 15th century noun referring to a kind of ship. The next-oldest noun has since 1573 referred to a genus of herbs. The noun referring to the color pink and its related adjective date to 1678 and 1720, respectively. Evidence suggests that a new verb "pink" -- a synonym of the verb "pink-slip" -- is also emerging.