pinch vs smooth

pinch

noun
  • A close compression of anything with the fingers. 

  • A small amount of powder or granules, such that the amount could be held between fingertip and thumb tip. 

  • An awkward situation of some kind (especially money or social) which is difficult to escape. 

  • An organic herbal smoke additive. 

  • A magnetic compression of an electrically-conducting filament. 

  • The narrow part connecting the two bulbs of an hourglass. 

  • The action of squeezing a small amount of a person's skin and flesh, making it hurt. 

  • An arrest. 

  • A metal bar used as a lever for lifting weights, rolling wheels, etc. 

verb
  • To squeeze between two objects. 

  • Of clothing, to be uncomfortably tight in specific spots. 

  • To arrest or capture. 

  • To squeeze between the thumb and forefinger. 

  • To sail so close-hauled that the sails begin to flutter. 

  • To take hold; to grip, as a dog does. 

  • To steal, usually something inconsequential. 

  • To cramp; to straiten; to oppress; to starve. 

  • To move, as a railroad car, by prying the wheels with a pinch. 

  • To cut shoots or buds of a plant in order to shape the plant, or to improve its yield. 

  • To squeeze a small amount of a person's skin and flesh, making it hurt. 

  • To seize; to grip; to bite. 

smooth

noun
  • A smoothing action. 

  • The analysis obtained through a smoothing procedure. 

  • Something that is smooth, or that goes smoothly and easily. 

  • A domestic animal having a smooth coat. 

  • A member of an anti-hippie fashion movement in 1970s Britain. 

adj
  • Having derivatives of all finite orders at all points within the function’s domain. 

  • Flowing or uttered without check, obstruction, or hesitation; not harsh; fluent. 

  • Natural; unconstrained. 

  • Not grainy; having an even texture. 

  • Without difficulty, problems, or unexpected consequences or incidents. 

  • Involuntary and non-striated. 

  • That factors completely into small prime numbers. 

  • Having a texture that lacks friction. Not rough. 

  • Unbroken. 

  • Lacking marked aspiration. 

  • Lacking projections or indentations; not serrated. 

  • Placid, calm. 

  • Having a pleasantly rounded flavor; neither rough nor astringent. 

  • Suave; sophisticated. 

  • Bland; glib. 

verb
  • To make smooth or even. 

  • To make straightforward or easy. 

  • To stroke; especially to stroke an animal's fur. 

  • To reduce to a particular shape or form by pressure; to press, to flatten. 

  • To calm or palliate. 

  • To capture important patterns in the data, while leaving out noise. 

adv
  • Smoothly. 

How often have the words pinch and smooth occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )