pinching

English

Adjective

pinching (comparative more pinching, superlative most pinching)

1. That pinches, or causes such a sensation
   • 1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island, London, Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC:

     It was one January morning, very early — a pinching, frosty morning — the cove all gray with hoar-frost, the ripple lapping softly on the stones, the sun still low and only touching the hilltops and shining far to seaward.

Verb

pinching

1. present participle and gerund of pinch

Noun

pinching (plural pinchings)

1. The act of one who or that which pinches.
   • 2012, Paul Theroux, The Lower River:

     Simon ate an orange, removing the peel in fastidious pinchings, such delicacy in a dugout on a river flowing through the bush.

2. (horticulture) The act of pinching off new growth.
   • 1926, Bimonthly Bulletin of the Ohio Agricultural Experiment Station, page 139:

     Six varieties gave more shoots from the greater number of pinchings while three had more shoots when pinching was discontinued August 10.

3. theft
   • 1990, Wayne Jancik, The Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders, →ISBN, page 20:

     As "Kings of the Covers," they re-recorded happening disks by Elvis ("Heartbreak Hotel") […] and, for their most publicly-known pinching, THE JAYHAWKS ("Stranded In The Jungle").

Derived terms

• penny-pinching