Definition

1. Noun:

   • A bird's wing: Specifically, the terminal segment of a bird's wing.
   • A flight feather: Any of the primary feathers of a bird's wing or tail, crucial for flight.
   • A small gear: In mechanics, a gear with a small number of teeth that meshes with a larger gear (a wheel) or a linear rack.

2. Verb:

   • To cut off the pinion of a bird: To clip or bind a bird's wing feathers to prevent flight.
   • To bind or restrain: To tie or hold someone's arms or hands, rendering them powerless.

Examples of Usage

• Noun (Bird's wing/feather):

  • The eagle's powerful pinion was damaged in the storm.
  • The ornithologist studied the primary pinions to determine the bird's age.

• Noun (Mechanical gear):

  • The rack and pinion system converts rotational motion into linear motion, commonly used in steering mechanisms.

• Verb (To disable a bird):

  • The zookeepers had to pinion the swan to keep it in the sanctuary pond.
  • In the past, pinioning was a common practice for domestic fowl.

• Verb (To restrain a person):

  • The guards pinioned the prisoner's arms behind his back.
  • He was pinioned to the chair, unable to move.

Advanced Usage

• "To be pinioned by": To be tightly constrained or held in place by something, often metaphorically.
  • She felt pinioned by the expectations of her family.
• "Rack and pinion": A specific mechanical assembly where a linear gear (the rack) engages with a circular gear (the pinion).
  • Most modern cars use a rack and pinion for steering.

Variants and Related Words

• Pinioned (adj.): Having had the wings clipped or being restrained.
  • The pinioned goose could not join the migration.
• Pinioning (n.): The act of clipping a bird's wing.

Synonyms

• Noun (Feather): Quill, flight feather, remex.
• Noun (Gear): Cog, gearwheel, sprocket.
• Verb (Restrain): Shackle, manacle, fetter, bind, immobilize.
• Verb (Disable a bird): Clip, dock.

Related Phrasal Verbs

(This word does not commonly form phrasal verbs. Its meanings are conveyed through the verb itself with prepositions like "to" or "by.")

Related Idioms

• "To clip someone's wings": This idiom is conceptually related to the verb 'to pinion,' meaning to restrict someone's freedom or power.
  • The new regulations effectively clipped the wings of the ambitious project.

Noun

1. wing of a bird
2. any of the larger wing or tail feathers of a bird
3. a gear with a small number of teeth designed to mesh with a larger wheel or rack

Verb

1. cut the wings off (of birds)
2. bind the arms of