fine

v. i. To become fine (in any one of various senses); as, the ale will fine; the weather fined.

To fine
away, down, off, gradually to become fine; to diminish; to dwindle. I watched her [ the ship ] . . . gradually fining down in the westward until I lost of her hull. W. C. Russel. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ OE. fin, L. finis end, also in LL., a final agreement or concord between the lord and his vassal; a sum of money paid at the end, so as to make an end of a transaction, suit, or prosecution; mulct; penalty; cf. OF. fin end, settlement, F. fin end. See Finish, and cf. Finance. ] 1. End; conclusion; termination; extinction. [ Obs. ] “To see their fatal fine.” Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

Is this the fine of his fines? Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A sum of money paid as the settlement of a claim, or by way of terminating a matter in dispute; especially, a payment of money imposed upon a party as a punishment for an offense; a mulct. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Law) (a) (Feudal Law) A final agreement concerning lands or rents between persons, as the lord and his vassal. Spelman.

(b) (Eng. Law) A sum of money or price paid for obtaining a benefit, favor, or privilege, as for admission to a copyhold, or for obtaining or renewing a lease. [ 1913 Webster ]

Fine for alienation (Feudal Law), a sum of money paid to the lord by a tenant whenever he had occasion to make over his land to another. Burrill. --
Fine of lands, a species of conveyance in the form of a fictitious suit compromised or terminated by the acknowledgment of the previous owner that such land was the right of the other party. Burrill. See Concord, n., 4. --
In fine, in conclusion; by way of termination or summing up. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Fined p. pr. & vb. n. Fining. ] [ From Fine, a. ] 1. To make fine; to refine; to purify, to clarify; as, to fine gold. [ 1913 Webster ]

It hath been fined and refined by . . . learned men. Hobbes. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To make finer, or less coarse, as in bulk, texture, etc.; as. to fine the soil. L. H. Bailey. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To change by fine gradations; as (Naut.), to fine down a ship's lines, to diminish her lines gradually. [ 1913 Webster ]

I often sate at home
On evenings, watching how they fined themselves
With gradual conscience to a perfect night. Browning. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. 1. Finely; well; elegantly; fully; delicately; mincingly. [ Obs., Dial., or Colloq. ] [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

2. (Billiards & Pool) In a manner so that the driven ball strikes the object ball so far to one side as to be deflected but little, the object ball being driven to one side. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

v. t. & i. [ OF. finer, F. finir. See Finish, v. t. ] To finish; to cease; or to cause to cease. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To pay a fine. See Fine, n., 3 (b). [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Men fined for the king's good will; or that he would remit his anger; women fined for leave to marry. Hallam. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Compar. finer superl. finest. ] [ F. fin, LL. finus fine, pure, fr. L. finire to finish; cf. finitus, p. p., finished, completed (hence the sense accomplished, perfect.) See Finish, and cf. Finite. ] 1. Finished; brought to perfection; refined; hence, free from impurity; excellent; superior; elegant; worthy of admiration; accomplished; beautiful. [ 1913 Webster ]

The gain thereof [ is better ] than fine gold. Prov. iii. 14. [ 1913 Webster ]

A cup of wine that's brisk and fine. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Not only the finest gentleman of his time, but one of the finest scholars. Felton. [ 1913 Webster ]

To soothe the sick bed of so fine a being [ Keats ]. Leigh Hunt. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Aiming at show or effect; loaded with ornament; overdressed or overdecorated; showy. [ 1913 Webster ]

He gratified them with occasional . . . fine writing. M. Arnold. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Nice; delicate; subtle; exquisite; artful; skillful; dexterous. [ 1913 Webster ]

The spider's touch, how exquisitely fine! Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

The nicest and most delicate touches of satire consist in fine raillery. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

He has as fine a hand at picking a pocket as a woman. T. Gray. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Not coarse, gross, or heavy; as: (a) Not gross; subtile; thin; tenous. [ 1913 Webster ]

The eye standeth in the finer medium and the object in the grosser. Bacon.

(b) Not coarse; comminuted; in small particles; as, fine sand or flour. (c) Not thick or heavy; slender; filmy; as, a fine thread. (d) Thin; attenuate; keen; as, a fine edge. (e) Made of fine materials; light; delicate; as, fine linen or silk. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Having (such) a proportion of pure metal in its composition; as, coins nine tenths fine. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Used ironically.) [ 1913 Webster ]

Ye have made a fine hand, fellows. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Fine is often compounded with participles and adjectives, modifying them adverbially; a, fine-drawn, fine-featured, fine-grained, fine-spoken, fine-spun, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

Fine arch (Glass Making), the smaller fritting furnace of a glasshouse. Knight. --
Fine arts. See the Note under Art. --
Fine cut, fine cut tobacco; a kind of chewing tobacco cut up into shreds. --
Fine goods, woven fabrics of fine texture and quality. McElrath. --
Fine stuff, lime, or a mixture of lime, plaster, etc., used as material for the finishing coat in plastering. --
To sail fine (Naut.), to sail as close to the wind as possible.

Syn. -- Fine, Beautiful. When used as a word of praise, fine (being opposed to coarse) denotes no “ordinary thing of its kind.” It is not as strong as beautiful, in reference to the single attribute implied in the latter term; but when we speak of a fine woman, we include a greater variety of particulars, viz., all the qualities which become a woman, -- breeding, sentiment, tact, etc. The term is equally comprehensive when we speak of a fine garden, landscape, horse, poem, etc.; and, though applied to a great variety of objects, the word has still a very definite sense, denoting a high degree of characteristic excellence. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. liable to a fine.
Syn. -- finable. [ WordNet 1.5 ]