fin

¹

[ fin ]

noun

1. a membranous, winglike or paddlelike organ attached to any of various parts of the body of fishes and certain other aquatic animals, used for propulsion, steering, or balancing.
2. Nautical.
   1. a horizontal, often adjustable, winglike appendage to the underwater portion of a hull, as one for controlling the dive of a submarine or for damping the roll of a surface vessel.
   2. fin keel ( def ).
3. Also called vertical stabilizer. Aeronautics. any of certain small, subsidiary structures on an aircraft, designed to increase directional stability.
4. any of a number of standing ridges on an ordinarily hot object, as a radiator, a cylinder of an internal-combustion engine, etc., intended to maximize heat transfer to the surrounding air by exposing a large surface area.
5. any part, as of a mechanism, resembling a fin.
6. Metallurgy. a ridge of metal squeezed through the opening between two rolls, dies, or halves of a mold in which a piece is being formed under pressure. Compare flash ( def 11 ).
7. Automotive. an ornamental structure resembling an aeronautical fin that is attached to the body of an automobile, as on each rear fender tail fin.
8. Slang. the arm or hand.
9. Usually fins. flipper ( def 2 ).

verb (used with object)

, finned, fin·ning.

1. to cut off the fins from (a fish); carve or cut up, as a chub.
2. to provide or equip with a fin or fins.

verb (used without object)

, finned, fin·ning.

1. to move the fins; lash the water with the fins, as a whale when dying.

fin

²

[ fin ]

noun

1. Slang. a five-dollar bill.

fin.

³

abbreviation for

1. finance.
2. financial.
3. finish.

Fin.

⁴

abbreviation for

1. Finland.
2. Finnish.

Fin

¹

abbreviation for

1. Finland
2. Finnish

fin.

²

abbreviation for

1. finance
2. financial

FIN

³

abbreviation for

1. Finland (international car registration)

fin

⁴

/ fɪn /

noun

1. slang.
   a five-dollar bill

fin

⁵

/ fɪn /

noun

1. any of the firm appendages that are the organs of locomotion and balance in fishes and some other aquatic animals. Most fishes have paired and unpaired fins, the former corresponding to the limbs of higher vertebrates
2. a part or appendage that resembles a fin
3. 1. a vertical surface to which the rudder is attached, usually placed at the rear of an aeroplane to give stability about the vertical axis US namevertical stabilizer
   2. a tail surface fixed to a rocket or missile to give stability
4. nautical a fixed or adjustable blade projecting under water from the hull of a vessel to give it stability or control
5. a projecting rib to dissipate heat from the surface of an engine cylinder, motor casing, or radiator
6. often plural another name for flipper

verb

1. tr to provide with fins
2. tr to remove the fins from (a dead fish)
3. intr (esp of a whale) to agitate the fins violently in the water

fin

/ fĭn /

1. One of the winglike or paddlelike parts of a fish, dolphin, or whale that are used for propelling, steering, and balancing in water.

Derived Forms

• ˈfinless, adjective

Other Words From

• finless adjective
• finlike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of fin¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English finn; cognate with Dutch vin, Low German finne; akin to Swedish fena; probably akin to Latin pinna ( def ); pen ¹( def )

Origin of fin²

First recorded in 1865–70; earlier finnip, finnup, fin(n)if “a five-pound note,” from Yiddish fin(e)f “five,” from Middle High German vumf, vimf; five

Word History and Origins

Origin of fin¹

from Yiddish finf five, ultimately from Old High German funf, finf

Origin of fin²

Old English finn ; related to Middle Dutch vinne , Old Swedish fina , Latin pinna wing

Example Sentences

These data exist for many other hunted whale species, such as fin and sei whales, so the new study's methods could provide a framework for similar analyses for those whale species too.

From Science Daily

Winter had put a life vest on the dog resembling a shark, with a dorsal fin protruding from its back.

From Los Angeles Times

Yet sea robins are most notable for their distinctively large, fan-shaped dorsal fins and for their six leg-like appendages.

From Salon

They inserted tracking tags in the small coho salmon, and clipped tiny pieces from chinook salmon fins, placing them in envelopes for genetic testing.

From Los Angeles Times

The dorsal fin is like a dolphin's fingerprint, as each has distinctive notches, ridges and pigmentation.

From BBC