1. (noun)pinch a painful or straitened circumstance "the pinch of the recession"
2. (noun)pinch an injury resulting from getting some body part squeezed
3. (noun)touch, hint, tinge, mite, pinch, jot, speck, soupcon a slight but appreciable amount "this dish could use a touch of garlic"
4. (noun)emergency, exigency, pinch a sudden unforeseen crisis (usually involving danger) that requires immediate action "he never knew what to do in an emergency"
7. (verb)apprehension, arrest, catch, collar, pinch, taking into custody the act of apprehending (especially apprehending a criminal) "the policeman on the beat got credit for the collar"
8. (verb)pinch, squeeze, twinge, tweet, nip, twitch squeeze tightly between the fingers "He pinched her behind"; "She squeezed the bottle"
9. (verb)crimp, pinch make ridges into by pinching together
10. (verb)pilfer, cabbage, purloin, pinch, abstract, snarf, swipe, hook, sneak, filch, nobble, lift make off with belongings of others
11. (verb)top, pinch cut the top off "top trees and bushes"
12. (verb)pinch, vellicate irritate as if by a nip, pinch, or tear "smooth surfaces can vellicate the teeth"; "the pain is as if sharp points pinch your back"
5. (verb)Pinch to press hard or squeeze between the ends of the fingers, between teeth or claws, or between the jaws of an instrument; to squeeze or compress, as between any two hard bodies
6. (verb)Pinch o seize; to grip; to bite; -- said of animals