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English (UK)
Cambridge Dictionary Online

Meaning of tin in English

tin
noun
uk
/tɪn/ us
/tɪn/

tin noun (METAL)

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C2 [ U ]
(symbol Sn)
a chemical element that is a silver-coloured metal, often combined with other metals or used to cover and protect other metals
Examples
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Chemistry: metals & metalworking
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tin noun (CONTAINER)

B1 [ C ] UK
(UK and US also can, tin can)
a closed metal container in which food is sold:
tin of He opened a tin of beans and emptied it into the saucepan.
piles of soup tins
 
Marielle, Bruno/GettyImages
B1 [ C ] UK
(US can)
the contents of a tin, or the amount of something a tin contains:
tin of The children ate two tins of beans.
B2 [ C ] UK
(US cookie tin)
a metal container with a lid used for keeping cakes or biscuits:
a biscuit tin
 
Andy Crawford/Dorling Kindersley/GettyImages
B2 [ C ] UK
(US can)
a cylindrical metal container with a lid used for keeping liquid substances such as paint:
tin of I picked up a tin of paint at the decorator's.
 
ognianm/iStock/Getty Images Plus/GettyImages
[ C ] UK
(US pan)
a metal container without a lid used for cooking food in the oven:
Put both cake tins in the oven for half an hour.
 
Mark_KA/iStock/Getty Image Plus/GettyImages
[ C ] Australian English
a closed metal container in which beer is sold:
a tin of beer
Compare
can noun (CONTAINER)
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Preserving & storing food
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(Definition of tin from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

tin | American Dictionary

tin
noun [ C/U ]
us
/tɪn/
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a soft, silver metal that is often combined with other metals or used as a layer to protect various metals
(Definition of tin from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of tin

tin
The materials were lead, titanium, solder wire and tin.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
But he also reported to his parents that the price of tin was falling.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In 1810, tin was discovered to be the only metal that could preserve food.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
We had packed all good crockery etc. away and used all tin utensils.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These are made out of roomy biscuit tins (lined with felt), with the lid ajar.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
As methods of canning became cheaper in the 1850s, world demand for tin-plate also increased.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
A change in diet and climate, with fresh or even tinned fruit and green vegetables normally effected a cure.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
They carried only two tins of food each and toothbrushes.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Measurements of laser driven spallation in tin and zinc using an optically recording velocity inter ferometer system.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
British import of foreign tin jumped from 4,000 tons to 86,600 tons from the 1840s to the 1870s.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The drums are normally referred to in songs as 'pans' and 'tin cans', of which the principle characteristic is the volume of sound produced.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The first ground coffee was not sealed in a tin can until 1878, and the key method for opening cans was not devised until 1895.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
A high wire fence, with tin sheets along its strands, enclosed the entire western exposure of the camp.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The majority of the manufacturing industries, plantations, tin reserves, and population are concentrated in the west.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The cleansing process allowed the tin oxide gas sensor to stabilise.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
See all examples of tin
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with tin

tin

These are words often used in combination with tin.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

biscuit tin
It is only by using modern technology that the shoe, ceramic, and biscuit tin industries—or any other industries—will remain in business in five or 10 years' time.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0
pressed tin
The interior of the building consists of a single room with a high ceiling and elaborate pressed tin ornamentation.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
tin ceiling
The term tin ceiling is a misnomer, as these decorative sheets were never tinned; they were almost always painted sheet iron or steel.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
See all collocations with tin
What is the pronunciation of tin?
 

Translations of tin

in Chinese (Traditional)
金屬, 錫, 容器…
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in Chinese (Simplified)
金属, 锡, 容器…
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in Spanish
estaño, lata, caja…
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in Portuguese
estanho, lata, vasilha…
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in more languages
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in Japanese
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कथील, हा एक चांदीच्या रंगाचा मुलधातू आहे. इतर धातूं बरोबर मिसळून अनेक मिश्र धातू बनवतात. इतर धातूंच्या रक्षणासाठी याचा मुलामा चढवण्याची पध्दत आहे., टिन चा डबा ज्यातून अन्न विकले जाते…
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（缶詰の）缶, （ふたの付いた）ブリキ缶, （化学元素の）スズ…
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teneke kutu, konserve kutusu, yayvan tava…
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fer -blanc [masculine], boîte [feminine] (en fer-blanc), boîte [feminine] de conserve…
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llauna, capsa, estany…
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tin, blik, tinnen…
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ஒரு வேதியியல் உறுப்பு, இது வெள்ளி நிற உலோகம், பெரும்பாலும் மற்ற உலோகங்களுடன் இணைந்து அல்லது மற்ற உலோகங்களை மூடி பாதுகாக்கப் பயன்படுகிறது…
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(धातु) टिन, टिन, एक धातु का बंद डिब्बा जिसमे खाद्य पदार्थ बेचा जाता है…
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ટિન, કલાઈ, ધાતુનું બંધ પાત્ર જેમાં વાનગી વેચવામાં આવે છે.…
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tin, blik, dåse…
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bleck, plåt, tenn…
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timah, tin…
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das Zinn, die Dose, Zinn-……
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tinn [neuter], boks [masculine], hermetikkboks [masculine]…
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ٹین, ٹین کا ڈبہ, ٹین کی چادر…
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олово, бляшанка, консервна банка…
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తగరం / వెండిరంగు లోహం, తరచుగా ఇతర లోహాలతో కలిపి లేదా ఇతర లోహాలను మూసి, రక్షించడానికి ఉపయోగించే రసాయన మూలకం…
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টিন, টিনের কৌটো, রঙের টিন…
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cín, plechovka, cínový…
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timah, kaleng…
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ดีบุก, กระป๋อง, ซึ่งทำด้วยแผ่นดีบุก…
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thiếc, hộp đựng thức ăn, bằng thiếc…
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puszka, blacha, cyna…
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통조림, 통, 주석…
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lattina, scatola, scatola di latta…
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overwhelmed

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/ˌəʊ.vəˈwelm/
US
/ˌoʊ.vɚˈwelm/

past simple and past participle of overwhelm

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