Tink
/tɪŋk/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A sharp, quick sound; a tinkle. dated
- 2 A member of the travelling community. A gypsy. British, Ireland, offensive
"'Most have white eyes, which ain't natural in any beast, tame or wild, and they are considered unlucky - the tinks calls 'em moonpies, and most will avoid settling on farms where they are kept."
Verb
- 1 To emit a high-pitched sharp or metallic noise.
"Jimmy heard the bells tink."
- 2 To unknit. slang, transitive
"Stanley knitted when he should have purled and swore, tinking the knitting back to fix the flaw."
- 3 make or emit a high sound wordnet
Example
More examples"Stanley knitted when he should have purled and swore, tinking the knitting back to fix the flaw."
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English tinken, possibly from Old English *tincian, equivalent to tin + -k. Compare Dutch tinken (“to tink, toll, strike the bells of a clock”), German Low German tinken (“to tink”). Compare also English ting.
Etymology 2
knit spelled backwards.
Etymology 3
Shortened from tinker.