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| pick [ pik ] |
verb (past and past participle picked, present participle pick·ing, 3rd person present singular picks) |
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| Definition: |
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1. transitive verb choose something or somebody: to take, or decide to take, one or more things or people from a larger number
  Pick three people for your team.
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2. transitive verb remove something from plant: to remove something, especially in quantity and by hand, from a plant on which it has grown
picking strawberries
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3. transitive verb strip something of fruit or flowers: to strip a plant, or all the plants in a place, of fruit or flowers
The bushes nearest the path had already been picked.
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4. transitive verb remove something in small pieces: to remove something part by part from the surface or middle of something using a sharp or pointed object such as a fingernail or a beak
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5. transitive verb scrape body part with fingernail: to use a fingernail to loosen and remove something, or to loosen and remove something attached to the surface of a part of the body
pick a scab
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6. transitive verb music pluck or play by plucking: to pluck the strings of a stringed instrument or to play a tune on such an instrument in this way
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7. transitive verb open something without proper key: to use a special device or pointed instrument to open a lock, usually illegally
pick a lock
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8. transitive verb undo something: to loosen, unfasten, or separate something into disconnected parts, especially something that was sewn together
pick a seam apart
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9. intransitive verb find fault: to be petty or fault-finding
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10. transitive verb start fight or argument: to begin a fight or argument with somebody, usually deliberately
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noun (plural picks) |
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| Definition: |
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1. choice: the act or right of choosing somebody or something
take your pick
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2. best: the very best of a wide selection of people or things
the pick of the bunch
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3. crop portion: the amount of a crop gathered by hand at one time
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| [13th century. Probably < assumed Old English pīcian "to prick," Old Icelandic pikka] |
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| pick·er noun |
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pick and choose to select only the best of what is on offer, or make a choice in a careful or fussy manner
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pick your way to step very carefully through a dirty, messy, or dangerous area of ground
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