Webster's Unabridged Dictionary - Letter P - Page 60
Pick (v. t.) To open (a lock) as by a wire.
Pick (v. t.) To pull apart or away, especially with the fingers; to pluck; to gather, as fruit from a tree, flowers from the stalk, feathers from a fowl, etc.
Pick (v. t.) To remove something from with a pointed instrument, with the fingers, or with the teeth; as, to pick the teeth; to pick a bone; to pick a goose; to pick a pocket.
Did you pick Master Slender's purse? -- Shak.
He picks clean teeth, and, busy as he seems With an old tavern quill, is hungry yet. -- Cowper.
Pick (v. t.) To choose; to select; to separate as choice or desirable; to cull; as, to pick one's company; to pick one's way; -- often with out. "One man picked out of ten thousand." -- Shak.
Pick (v. t.) To take up; esp., to gather from here and there; to collect; to bring together; as, to pick rags; -- often with up; as, to pick up a ball or stones; to pick up information.
Pick (v. t.) To trim. [Obs.] -- Chaucer.
To pick at, To tease or vex by pertinacious annoyance.
To pick a bone with. See under Bone.
To pick a thank, To curry favor. [Obs.] -- Robynson (More's Utopia).
To pick off. (a) To pluck; to remove by picking.
To pick off. (b) To shoot or bring down, one by one; as, sharpshooters pick off the enemy.
To pick out. (a) To mark out; to variegate; as, to pick out any dark stuff with lines or spots of bright colors.
To pick out. (b) To select from a number or quantity.
To pick to pieces, To pull apart piece by piece; hence [Colloq.], to analyze; esp., to criticize in detail.
To pick a quarrel, To give occasion of quarrel intentionally.
To pick up. (a) To take up, as with the fingers.
To pick up. (b) To get by repeated efforts; to gather here and there; as, to pick up a livelihood; to pick up news.
Pick (v. i.) To eat slowly, sparingly, or by morsels; to nibble.
Why stand'st thou picking? Is thy palate sore? -- Dryden.
Pick (v. i.) To do anything nicely or carefully, or by attending to small things; to select something with care.
Pick (v. i.) To steal; to pilfer. "To keep my hands from picking and stealing." -- Book of Com. Prayer.
To pick up, To improve by degrees; as, he is picking up in health or business. [Colloq. U.S.]
Pick (n.) A sharp-pointed tool for picking; -- often used in composition; as, a toothpick; a picklock.
Pick (n.) (Mining & Mech.) A heavy iron tool, curved and sometimes pointed at both ends, wielded by means of a wooden handle inserted in the middle, -- used by quarrymen, roadmakers, etc.; also, a pointed hammer used for dressing millstones.
Pick (n.) A pike or spike; the sharp point fixed in the center of a buckler. [Obs.] "Take down my buckler . . . and grind the pick on 't." -- Beau. & Fl.
Pick (n.) Choice; right of selection; as, to have one's pick; in cat breeding, the owner of a stud gets the pick of the litter.
France and Russia have the pick of our stables. -- Ld. Lytton.
Pick (n.) Hence: That which would be picked or chosen first; the best; as, the pick of the flock.
Pick (n.) (Print.) A particle of ink or paper imbedded in the hollow of a letter, filling up its face, and occasioning a spot on a printed sheet. -- MacKellar.
Pick (n.) (Painting) That which is picked in, as with a pointed pencil, to correct an unevenness in a picture.
Pick (n.) (Weaving) The blow which drives the shuttle, -- the rate of speed of a loom being reckoned as so many picks per minute; hence, in describing the fineness of a fabric, a weft thread; as, so many picks to an inch.
Pick dressing (Arch.), In cut stonework, a facing made by a pointed tool, leaving the surface in little pits or depressions.
Pick hammer, A pick with one end sharp and the other blunt, used by miners.
Pick (n.) The person or thing chosen or selected; "he was my pick for mayor" [syn: choice, pick, selection].
Pick (n.) The quantity of a crop that is harvested; "he sent the first picking of berries to the market"; "it was the biggest peach pick in years" [syn: picking, pick].
Pick (n.) The best people or things in a group; "the cream of England's young men were killed in the Great War" [syn: cream, pick].
Pick (n.) The yarn woven across the warp yarn in weaving [syn: woof, weft, filling, pick].
Pick (n.) A small thin device (of metal or plastic or ivory) used to pluck a stringed instrument [syn: pick, plectrum, plectron].
Pick (n.) A thin sharp implement used for removing unwanted material; "he used a pick to clean the dirt out of the cracks".
Pick (n.) A heavy iron tool with a wooden handle and a curved head that is pointed on both ends; "they used picks and sledges to break the rocks" [syn: pick, pickax, pickaxe].
Pick (n.) A basketball maneuver; obstructing an opponent with one's body; "he was called for setting an illegal pick".
Pick (n.) The act of choosing or selecting; "your choice of colors was unfortunate"; "you can take your pick" [syn: choice, selection, option, pick].
Pick (v.) Select carefully from a group; "She finally picked her successor"; "He picked his way carefully".
Pick (v.) Look for and gather; "pick mushrooms"; "pick flowers" [syn: pick, pluck, cull].
Pick (v.) Harass with constant criticism; "Don't always pick on your little brother" [syn: blame, find fault, pick].
Pick (v.) Provoke; "pick a fight or a quarrel".
Pick (v.) Remove in small bits; "pick meat from a bone".
Pick (v.) Remove unwanted substances from, such as feathers or pits; "Clean the turkey" [syn: clean, pick].
Pick (v.) Pilfer or rob; "pick pockets".
Pick (v.) Pay for something; "pick up the tab"; "pick up the burden of high-interest mortgages"; "foot the bill" [syn: foot, pick].
Pick (v.) Pull lightly but sharply with a plucking motion; "he plucked the strings of his mandolin" [syn: pluck, plunk, pick].
Pick (v.) Attack with or as if with a pickaxe of ice or rocky ground, for example; "Pick open the ice" [syn: pick, break up].
Pick (v.) Hit lightly with a picking motion [syn: peck, pick, beak].
Pick (v.) Eat intermittently; take small bites of; "He pieced at the sandwich all morning"; "She never eats a full meal--she just nibbles" [syn: nibble, pick, piece].
Pickaback (adv.) On the back or shoulders; as, to ride pickback. [Written also pickapack, pickback, and pickpack.]
Syn: piggyback.
A woman stooping to take a child pickaback. -- R,Jefferies.
Pickaback (adv.) On a railroad flatcar; "the trailer rode piggyback across the country" [syn: piggyback, pickaback, pig-a-back].
Pickaback (adv.) On the back or shoulder or astraddle on the hip; "she carried her child piggyback" [syn: piggyback, pickaback, pig-a-back].
Pickaninnies (n. pl. ) of Pickaninny
Pickaninny (n.) A small child; especially, a negro or mulatto infant.
Pickapack (adv.) Pickaback.
Pickax (n.) Alt. of Pickaxe.
Pickaxe (n.) A pick with a point at one end, a transverse edge or blade at the other, and a handle inserted at the middle; a hammer with a flattened end for driving wedges and a pointed end for piercing as it strikes.
Pickback (adv.) On the back.
Picked (a.) Pointed; sharp.
Picked (a.) Having a pike or spine on the back; -- said of certain fishes.
Picked (a.) Carefully selected; chosen; as, picked men.
Picked (a.) Fine; spruce; smart; precise; dianty.
Pickedness (n.) The state of being sharpened; pointedness.
Pickedness (n.) Fineness; spruceness; smartness.
Pickeered (imp. & p. p.) of Pickeer.
Pickeering (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Pickeer.
Pickeer (v. i.) To make a raid for booty; to maraud; also, to skirmish in advance of an army. See Picaroon.
Pickeerer (n.) One who pickeers.
Picker (n.) One who, or that which, picks, in any sense, -- as, one who uses a pick; one who gathers; a thief; a pick; a pickax; as, a cotton picker.
Picker (n.) A machine for picking fibrous materials to pieces so as to loosen and separate the fiber.
Picker (n.) The piece in a loom which strikes the end of the shuttle, and impels it through the warp.
Picker (n.) A priming wire for cleaning the vent.
Pickerel (n.) A young or small pike.
Pickerel (n.) Any one of several species of freshwater fishes of the genus Esox, esp. the smaller species.
Pickerel (n.) The glasseye, or wall-eyed pike. See Wall-eye.
Pickering (n.) The sauger of the St.Lawrence River.
Pickery (n.) Petty theft.
Picket (n.) A stake sharpened or pointed, especially one used in fortification and encampments, to mark bounds and angles; or one used for tethering horses.
Picket (n.) A pointed pale, used in marking fences.
Picket (n.) A detached body of troops serving to guard an army from surprise, and to oppose reconnoitering parties of the enemy; -- called also outlying picket.
Picket (n.) By extension, men appointed by a trades union, or other labor organization, to intercept outsiders, and prevent them from working for employers with whom the organization is at variance.
Picket (n.) A military punishment, formerly resorted to, in which the offender was forced to stand with one foot on a pointed stake.
Picket (n.) A game at cards. See Piquet.
Picketed (imp. & p. p.) of Picket.
Picketing (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Picket.
Picket (v. t.) To fortify with pointed stakes.
Picket (v. t.) To inclose or fence with pickets or pales.
Picket (v. t.) To tether to, or as to, a picket; as, to picket a horse.
Picket (v. t.) To guard, as a camp or road, by an outlying picket.
Picket (v. t.) To torture by compelling to stand with one foot on a pointed stake.
Picketee (n.) (Bot.) See Picotee.
Pick-fault (n.) One who seeks out faults.
Picking (n.) The act of digging or breaking up, as with a pick.
Picking (n.) The act of choosing, plucking, or gathering.
Picking (n.) That which is, or may be, picked or gleaned.
Picking (n.) Pilfering; also, that which is pilfered.
Picking (n.) pl. The pulverized shells of oysters used in making walks. [Eng.] -- Simmonds.
Picking (n.) (Mining) Rough sorting of ore.
Picking (n.) Overburned bricks. -- Simmonds.
Picking (a.) Done or made as with a pointed tool; as, a picking sound.
Picking (a.) Nice; careful. [Obs.]
Was too warm on picking work to dwell. -- Dryden.
Picking peg. (Weaving) See Picker, n., 3.
Picking (n.) The quantity of a crop that is harvested; "he sent the first picking of berries to the market"; "it was the biggest peach pick in years" [syn: picking, pick].
Picking (n.) The act of picking (crops or fruit or hops etc.)
Pickle (n.) [Obs.] See Picle.
Pickle (n.) （醃魚，蔬菜等的）鹽滷，泡菜水 [U]；醃漬食品；醃菜，泡菜 [P]；（清潔金屬表面用的）淡酸水；（處理皮革用的）浸酸 [U]；【口】困境 [the S]；【英】【口】淘氣鬼 [C] A solution of salt and water, in which fish, meat, etc., may be preserved or corned; brine.
Pickle (n.) Vinegar, plain or spiced, used for preserving vegetables, fish, eggs, oysters, etc.
Pickle (n.) Any article of food which has been preserved in brine or in vinegar.
Pickle (n.) (Founding) A bath of dilute sulphuric or nitric acid, etc., to remove burnt sand, scale rust, etc., from the surface of castings, or other articles of metal, or to brighten them or improve their color.
Pickle (n.) A troublesome child; as, a little pickle. [Colloq.]
To be in a pickle, To be in disagreeable position; to be in a condition of embarrassment, difficulty, or disorder. "How cam'st thou in this pickle?" -- Shak.
To put a rod in pickle, To prepare a particular reproof, punishment, or penalty for future application.
Compare: Picle
Picle (n.) A small piece of land inclosed with a hedge; a close. [Obs.] [Written also pickle.]
Pickled (imp. & p. p.) of Pickle.
Pickling (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Pickle.
Pickle (v. t.) （用鹽滷或醋）醃製，將……做成泡菜；用酸性溶液清洗 To preserve or season in pickle; to treat with some kind of pickle; as, to pickle herrings or cucumbers.
Pickle (v. t.) To give an antique appearance to; -- said of copies or imitations of paintings by the old masters.
Pickle (n.) Vegetables (especially cucumbers) preserved in brine or vinegar.
Pickle (n.) Informal terms for a difficult situation; "he got into a terrible fix"; "he made a muddle of his marriage" [syn: fix, hole, jam, mess, muddle, pickle, kettle of fish].
Pickle (v.) Preserve in a pickling liquid.
Pickled (a.) Preserved in a pickle.
Pickled (a.) (Used of foods) Preserved in a pickling liquid.
Pickle-herring (n.) A herring preserved in brine; a pickled herring.
Pickle-herring (n.) A merry-andrew; a buffoon.
Pickler (n.) One who makes pickles.
Picklock (n.) An instrument for picking locks.
Picklock (n.) One who picks locks; a thief.
Pickmire (n.) The pewit, or black-headed gull.
Picknick (n.) See Picnic.
Pickpack (adv.) Pickaback.
Pickpennies (n. pl. ) of Pickpenny.
Pickpenny (n.) A miser; also, a sharper.
Pickpocket (n.) One who steals purses or other articles from pockets.
Pickpurse (n.) One who steals purses, or money from purses.
Picksy (n.) See Pixy.
Pickthank (n.) One who strives to put another under obligation; an officious person; hence, a flatterer. Used also adjectively.
Picktooth (n.) A toothpick.
Picke (n.) A small piece of land inclosed with a hedge; a close.
Picnic (v.) Formerly, an entertainment at which each person contributed some dish to a common table; now, an excursion or pleasure party in which the members partake of a collation or repast (usually in the open air, and from food carried by themselves).
Picnic (n.) [ C ] (A1) An occasion when you have an informal meal of sandwiches, etc. outside, or the food itself.
// If the weather's nice we could have a picnic in the park.
// Why don't you take a picnic with you?
// A picnic area/ lunch/ table.
// A picnic basket/ hamper.
Idiom:
Be no picnic (Informal) To be a difficult or unpleasant situation.
// Being a single parent is no picnic, I can tell you.
picnic (v.) [ I ] (past participle picnicking, past tense and past participle picnicked) To have a picnic somewhere.
// There were several families picnicking on the river bank.
Picnicked (imp. & p. p.) of Picnic.
Picnicking (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Picnic.
Picnic (v. i.) To go on a picnic, or pleasure excursion; to eat in public fashion.
Picnicker (n.) One who takes part in a picnic.
Picoid (a.) Like or pertaining to the Pici.