Library / English Dictionary

TIN

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: tinned    , tinning   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Airtight sealed metal container for food or drink or paint etc.

Synonyms:

can; tin; tin can

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("tin" is a kind of...):

container (any object that can be used to hold things (especially a large metal boxlike object of standardized dimensions that can be loaded from one form of transport to another))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "tin"):

beer can (a can that holds beer)

caddy; tea caddy (a can for storing tea)

cannikin (a small can)

coffee can (a can for storing ground coffee)

milk can (large can for transporting milk)

oilcan (a can with a long nozzle to apply oil to machinery)

soda can (a can for holding soft drinks)

Derivation:

tin (preserve in a can or tin)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Metal container for storing dry foods such as tea or flour

Synonyms:

canister; cannister; tin

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("tin" is a kind of...):

container (any object that can be used to hold things (especially a large metal boxlike object of standardized dimensions that can be loaded from one form of transport to another))

Derivation:

tin (preserve in a can or tin)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A vessel (box, can, pan, etc.) made of tinplate and used mainly in baking

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("tin" is a kind of...):

vessel (an object used as a container (especially for liquids))

Holonyms ("tin" is a substance of...):

tin plate; tinplate (a thin sheet of metal (iron or steel) coated with tin to prevent rusting; used especially for cans, pots, and tins)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A silvery malleable metallic element that resists corrosion; used in many alloys and to coat other metals to prevent corrosion; obtained chiefly from cassiterite where it occurs as tin oxide

Synonyms:

atomic number 50; Sn; tin

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Hypernyms ("tin" is a kind of...):

metal; metallic element (any of several chemical elements that are usually shiny solids that conduct heat or electricity and can be formed into sheets etc.)

Holonyms ("tin" is a substance of...):

tin foil; tinfoil (foil made of tin or an alloy of tin and lead)

cassiterite (a hard heavy dark mineral that is the chief source of tin)

Derivation:

tin (prepare (a metal) for soldering or brazing by applying a thin layer of solder to the surface)

tin (plate with tin)

tinny (of or containing tin)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Prepare (a metal) for soldering or brazing by applying a thin layer of solder to the surface

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "tin" is one way to...):

plate (coat with a layer of metal)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

tin (a silvery malleable metallic element that resists corrosion; used in many alloys and to coat other metals to prevent corrosion; obtained chiefly from cassiterite where it occurs as tin oxide)

tinning (the application of a thin layer of soft solder to the ends of wires before soldering them)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Preserve in a can or tin

Example:

tinned foods are not very tasty

Synonyms:

can; put up; tin

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "tin" is one way to...):

keep; preserve (prevent (food) from rotting)

Domain category:

cookery; cooking; preparation (the act of preparing something (as food) by the application of heat)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sentence example:

The chefs tin the vegetables

Derivation:

tin (airtight sealed metal container for food or drink or paint etc.)

tin (metal container for storing dry foods such as tea or flour)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Plate with tin

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "tin" is one way to...):

plate (coat with a layer of metal)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

tin (a silvery malleable metallic element that resists corrosion; used in many alloys and to coat other metals to prevent corrosion; obtained chiefly from cassiterite where it occurs as tin oxide)

tinning (the application of a protective layer of tin)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Mr. Micawber evidently had his presentiment on the subject too, but he put it in his tin pot and swallowed it.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

He drew some cognac from the cask into a tin cannikin.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

We all filed into the front room and sat round the central table while the Inspector unlocked a square tin box and laid a small heap of things before us.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

There was driftwood, though not much, on the beach, and the sight of a coffee tin I had taken from the Ghost’s larder had given me the idea of a fire.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

Alleyne sat down willingly as directed with two great bundles on either side of him which contained the strollers' dresses—doublets of flame-colored silk and girdles of leather, spangled with brass and tin.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Large masses of nickel and of tin were discovered stored in an out-house, but no coins were to be found, which may have explained the presence of those bulky boxes which have been already referred to.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"Yes," answered the tin man, "I did. I've been groaning for more than a year, and no one has ever heard me before or come to help me."

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

Half a dozen tins will do.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The tin box must be returned to him, but, of course, the securities which Peter Carey has sold are lost forever.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

In the afternoon he threw the rest of it away, there remaining to him only the half-blanket, the tin bucket, and the rifle.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)