Fin
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
- 1 One of the appendages of a fish, used to propel itself and to manoeuvre/maneuver.
"The fish's fins minimize water flow."
- 2 a five-pound (£5) note; the sum of five pounds. UK, slang
- 3 "The end". archaic
- 4 Initialism of facility ID number. US, abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
- 5 organ of locomotion and balance in fishes and some other aquatic animals wordnet
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- 6 A similar appendage of a cetacean or other marine animal.
"a dolphin's fin"
- 7 A five-dollar bill; the sum of five dollars. US, dated, slang
- 8 Denotes the end of the road. obsolete
- 9 Initialism of force identification number. UK, abbreviation, alt-of, initialism
- 10 a stabilizer on a ship that resembles the fin of a fish wordnet
- 11 A thin, rigid component of an aircraft, extending from the fuselage and used to stabilise and steer the aircraft.
"The fin stabilises the plane in flight."
- 12 a shoe for swimming; the paddle-like front is an aid in swimming (especially underwater) wordnet
- 13 A similar structure protruding from a projectile, used to help keep it on course.
- 14 one of a set of parallel slats in a door or window to admit air and reject rain wordnet
- 15 A similar structure on the bottom of a surfboard, used to help steer it.
- 16 one of a pair of decorations projecting above the rear fenders of an automobile wordnet
- 17 A hairstyle, resembling the fin of a fish, in which the hair is combed and set into a vertical ridge along the top of the head from about the crown to the forehead.
- 18 the cardinal number that is the sum of four and one wordnet
- 19 A device worn by divers and swimmers on their feet.
"The divers wore fins to swim faster."
- 20 An extending part on a surface of a radiator, engine, heatsink, etc., used to facilitate cooling.
- 21 A sharp raised edge (generally in concrete) capable of damaging a roof membrane or vapor retarder.
- 22 The conning tower of a submarine.
- 23 A person's hand. UK, obsolete, slang
""Done say I to that, Reuben, tip me your fin, my spark, and it shall be a bet.""
- 1 To cut the fins from a fish, shark, etc. transitive
- 2 show the fins above the water while swimming wordnet
- 3 (Of a fish) to swim with the dorsal fin above the surface of the water. intransitive
"When you spot him finning just under the surface, you move up quietly and present [...] bait, usually a squid."
- 4 propel oneself through the water in a finning motion wordnet
- 5 To swim in the manner of a fish. intransitive
"A neutrally buoyant diver does not need to fin to maintain depth."
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- 6 equip (a car) with fins wordnet
- 7 To provide (a motor vehicle etc) with fins. transitive
- 1 commune in the Somme department in France
Example
More examples"He thought he perceived the black fin of a shark swimming near the surface of the water."
Etymology
From Middle English fin, from Old English finn, from Proto-Germanic *finnō, *finǭ (“dorsal fin”) (compare Dutch vin, German Finne, Swedish finne, fena), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pīn- (“backbone, dorsal fin”) (compare Old Irish ind (“end, point”), Latin pinna (“feather, wing, fin”), Tocharian A spin (“hook”).
From Yiddish פֿינף (finf, “five”). Doublet of cinque, finnuf, five, pimp (“five”), ponzu, punch (“beverage”), and sengi (“currency”).
From French fin (“end”). Doublet of fine and finis.