Link Centre Dictionary

in

UK/ən/ US/ɪn/ very common informal
adverb (2) noun (3) adjective (3)

adverb

1.

to or toward the inside of

  • “come in”
  • “smash in the door”
Synonyms
2.

inside an enclosed space

Antonyms

noun

1.

a unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot

Synonyms
2.
3.

adjective

1.

holding office

  • “the in party”
Similar
2.

directed or bound inward

  • “took the in bus”
  • “the in basket”
Similar
3.

currently fashionable

  • “the in thing to do”
  • “large shoulder pads are in”
Similar

Origin

PIE word *h₁en Preposition and verb from Middle English in, from Old English in, from Proto-Germanic *in. Adverb, noun and adjective from Middle English in, from Old English inn and inne, from Proto-Germanic *innai. Sense 1/2 "in"/"into" are from the original PIE prefix, with locative/accusative case respectively. Sense 3/4 "qualification"/"means" are from the PIE metaphor of all infinitives coming from locatives.

Phrases

  • bail in
  • come in
  • end in
  • in between
  • in funds
  • in on
  • in one's eyes
  • in someone's eyes
  • ins and outs

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Parts

Part of

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.