opine

See also: opiné and opiine

English

WOTD – 10 November 2009

Etymology 1

From Middle French opiner, from Latin opīnor (“to hold as an opinion”), from *opīnus (“thinking, expecting”), only in negative nec-opīnus (“not expecting”) and in-opīnus (“not expected”); akin to optō (“to choose, desire”), and to apīscor (“to obtain”); see optate and opt.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ə(ʊ)ˈpaɪn/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /oʊˈpaɪn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪn

Verb

opine (third-person singular simple present opines, present participle opining, simple past and past participle opined)

1. (intransitive, transitive) To express an opinion; to state as an opinion; to suppose, consider (that).

   I opined that matters would soon become considerably worse.

   "Your decisions," she opined, "have been unfailingly disastrous for this company."

2. (intransitive) To give one's formal opinion (on or upon something).

   I had to opine on the situation because I thought a different perspective was in order.

3. (intransitive, transitive) to suppose, consider as correct, or entertain, an opinion.
   • 1859 Walter Scott: The Waverley Novels

     Do you, Maister Francis, opine that ye will re-establish your father's credit by cutting your kinsman's thrapple, or getting your ain sneckit instead thereof in the College-yards of Glasgow?

   • 1870 The Dental Times, Pennsylvanian College of Dental Surgery, Vol VII p 130

     This, I opine, is a correct and fair statement of the case.

Derived terms

• opination

 

Related terms

• opinion
• opinionated

 

Translations

to have or express an opinion

• Arabic: رَأَى (ar) (raʔā), ظَنَّ (ẓanna)
• Bulgarian: изказвам мнение (izkazvam mnenie)
• Catalan: opinar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 表述觀點, 表述观点 (biǎoshù guāndiǎn), 覺得／觉得 (zh) (juéde)

• Danish: mene
• Dutch: van mening zijn dat, opiniëren (nl)
• Esperanto: opinii (eo)
• Finnish: esittää mielipiteenään (express), olla jotakin mieltä (have), nähdä (fi), arvioida (fi), uskoa (fi)
• French: opiner (fr)
• Gagauz: esaplamaa, sanmaa
• German: meinen (de)
• Greek: γνωμολογώ (el) (gnomologó)
• Hungarian: vél (hu), vélekedik (hu)
• Ido: opinionar (io)
• Japanese: 思う (ja) (おもう, omou)
• Komi-Zyrian: чайтны (ćajtny)
• Korean: 생각하다 (ko) (saenggakhada)
• Mari:

  Eastern Mari: шотлаш (šotlaš), шонаш (šonaš)

  Western Mari: шотлаш (šotlaš), шанаш (šanaš)

• Norwegian: mene (no)
• Occitan: opinar (oc)
• Polish: opiniować, wydawać opinię
• Portuguese: opinar (pt)
• Russian: полага́ть (ru) impf (polagátʹ), счита́ть (ru) impf (sčitátʹ), ду́мать (ru) impf (dúmatʹ)
• Slovene: meniti
• Spanish: opinar (es)
• Swedish: mena (sv)
• Telugu: ఆభిప్రాయపడుట (ābhiprāyapaḍuṭa)
• Udmurt: кожаны (kožany)

to state as an opinion

• Arabic: رَأَى (ar) (raʔā)
• Bulgarian: мисля (bg) (mislja), смятам (bg) (smjatam)
• Catalan: opinar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 表示 (zh) (biǎoshì)

• Dutch: van mening zijn, opiniëren (nl), menen (nl)
• Finnish: esittää mielipiteenään, kertoa mielipiteensä
• Hungarian: véleményt nyilvánít, elmondja/hozzáfűzi a véleményét
• Ido: expresar (io)
• Italian: ritenere (it), affermare (it)
• Latin: opīnor
• Occitan: opinar (oc)
• Portuguese: opinar (pt)
• Russian: выска́зывать (ru) (vyskázyvatʹ) мне́ние (ru) (mnénije)
• Slovene: omeniti
• Spanish: opinar (es)

Etymology 2

From Ancient Greek ὀπός (opós, “juice of a plant”) +‎ -ine.

Noun

opine (plural opines)

1. (biochemistry) Any of a class of organic compounds, derived from amino acids, found in some plant tumours

Translations

any of a class of organic compounds, derived from amino acids, found in some plant tumours

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 冠瘿氨基酸, 冠瘿碱

• Finnish: opiini
• Italian: opina (it) f

Further reading

• “opine”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “opine”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

French

Pronunciation

• Homophones: opinent, opines

Verb

opine

1. inflection of opiner:
   1. first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
   2. second-person singular imperative

Italian

Noun

opine

1. plural of opina

Anagrams

• peoni, pieno, pione

Portuguese

Verb

opine

1. inflection of opinar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /oˈpine/ [oˈpi.ne]
• Rhymes: -ine
• Syllabification: o‧pi‧ne

Verb

opine

1. inflection of opinar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative