tin
pronunciation
How to pronounce tin in British English:
UK [tɪn]
How to pronounce tin in American English:
US [ tɪn]
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- Noun:
- 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
- metal container for storing dry foods such as tea or flour
- airtight sealed metal container for food or drink or paint etc.
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- Verb:
- plate with tin
- preserve in a can or tin
- prepare (a metal) for soldering or brazing by applying a thin layer of solder to the surface
Word Origin
- tin
- tin: [OE] Tin is a general Germanic word, with relatives in German zinn, Dutch and Danish tin, and Swedish tenn. These point to a common ancestor *tinam, but where this came from is not known. The word was first used for a ‘tin can’ in the early 19th century. Tinker may be related.
- tin (n.)
- Old English tin, from Proto-Germanic *tinom (cognates: Middle Dutch and Dutch tin, Old High German zin, German Zinn, Old Norse tin), of unknown origin, not found outside Germanic. Other Indo-European languages often have separate words for "tin" as a raw metal and "tin plate;" such as French étain, fer-blanc. Pliny refers to tin as plumbum album "white lead," and for centuries it was regarded as a form of silver debased by lead; hence its figurative use for "mean, petty, worthless." The chemical symbol Sn is from Late Latin stannum (see stannic). Meaning "container made of tin" is from 1795. Tin-can is from 1770; as naval slang for "destroyer," by 1937. Tin-type in photography is from 1864. Tin ear "lack of musical discernment" is from 1909. Tin Lizzie "early Ford, especially a Model T," first recorded 1915.
Example
- 1. Copper and tin prices hit record highs last week .
- 2. He holds a silver tin of emerald-green spinach that could also be a pot of money .
- 3. And instead of tin , he went with plastic .
- 4. After an hour a policeman came back with the tin of cocaine and a note from the analyst .
- 5. China already buys tin , zinc and silver from bolivia .