pine
UK[paɪn]US[paɪn]
n
An evergreen tree with needle-shaped leaves that produces cones.
n
The pale wood from a pine tree.
v
To become very sad and weak because you miss someone or something very much, or to want something very much.
Etymology
The word 'pine' for the tree entered English from Latin 'pīnus' via Old English 'pīn' and Old French 'pin'. Its deeper ancestry lies in the Proto-Indo-European root peie-, associated with swelling or fatness, likely alluding to the tree's resinous, sappy nature. The verb 'to pine', meaning to languish or waste away from grief or longing, developed in Middle English from the idea of suffering a pain that consumes the body, metaphorically extending the sense of wasting or withering akin to a tree losing its vitality. Thus, the two modern meanings—the resilient evergreen and the verb for longing decay—share an ancient linguistic root but diverged along distinct semantic paths.
Analysis
This is a simplex word. It originates from the Latin word 'pīnus', meaning 'pine tree, fir tree'. The Latin term is traced back to the Proto-Indo-European root peie-, meaning 'to be fat, swell', which could refer to the resinous sap or the wood of the tree.
Examples
The cabin was surrounded by tall, fragrant pine trees.
She began to pine for her homeland after years abroad.
The floor was made of polished pine.