[person] See: IN PERSON.

[pet name]{n. phr.} A special or abbreviated name indicatingaffection. •/He never calls his wife her real name, "Elizabeth," but onlysuch pet names as "honey," "honey bunch," "sweetheart," and "sugar."/

[petard] See: HOIST WITH ONE’S OWN PETARD.

[Peter] See: ROB PETER TO PAY PAUL.

[peter out]{v.}, {informal} To fail or die down gradually; growless; become exhausted. •/After the factory closed, the town pretty wellpetered out./ •/The mine once had a rich vein of silver, but it peteredout./ •/But as he thought of her, his anger slowly petered out./ Compare:GIVE OUT.

[photo finish]{n. phr.} A close finish in a race of people or animals,where the camera must decide the actual result, sometimes by millimeters.•/The black horse was declared the winner in a photo finish./

[pick] See: BONE TO PICK or CROW TO PICK.

[pick a bone] See: BONE TO PICK.

[pick a fight] See: PICK A QUARREL.

[pick a hole in] or [pick holes in] {v. phr.}, {informal} Tofind a mistake in or things wrong with; criticize; blame. •/The witness saidhe had been walking in the moonlight last Sunday, but the lawyer picked a holein what he said by proving that there was no moon and that it rained Sundaynight./ •/Mary is always picking holes in what the other girls do./Compare: FIND FAULT.

[pick and choose]{v.} To select with much care; choose in a fussy way;take a long time before choosing. •/He was never one to pick and choose./•/Some people pick and choose to get something perfect, and some just becausethey can’t make up their minds./

[pick apart] or [pick to pieces] {v. phr.} To criticize harshly;find things wrong with; find fault with. •/After the dance, the girls pickedSusan apart./ •/They picked the play to pieces./

[pick a pocket]{v. phr.} To steal by removing from the pocket ofanother. •/While in the train, somebody picked his pocket and took the lastdollar he had./

[pick a/the lock]{v. phr.} To burglarize; open illegally; open a lockwithout the regular key. •/The robber got into the house by picking thelock./

[pick a quarrel]{v. phr.} To seek the opportunity for a fight or aquarrel. •/When Charlie has too much to drink, he has a tendency to pick aquarrel with whomever happens to be around./ See: PICK A FIGHT.

[pick at]{v.} 1. To reach or grasp for repeatedly. •/The baby keptpicking at the coverlet./ 2. To eat without appetite; choose a small pieceevery little while to eat. •/He picked at his food./ 3. To annoy or bothercontinually; find fault with. •/They showed their displeasure by continuallypicking at her./ Syn.: PICK ON.

[pick holes in]{v. phr.} To criticize or find fault with something,such as a speech, a statement, a theory, etc. •/It is easier to pick holes insomeone else’s argument than to make a good one yourself./

[pick-me-up]{n. phr.} Something you take when you feel tired or weak.•/John stopped at a drugstore for a pick-me-up after working three hoursovertime./ •/Mary always carried a bar of chocolate in her pocketbook for apick-me-up./

[pickpocket]{n.} A thief; a petty criminal who steals things and moneyout of people’s pockets on a bus, train, etc. •/In some big cities many poorchildren become pickpockets out of poverty./

[pick off]{v.} 1. To pull off; remove with the fingers. •/He pickedoff the burs that had stuck to his overcoat./ 2. To shoot, one at a time;knock down one by one. •/The sniper picked off the slower soldiers as theycame out into the road./ 3. To catch a base runner off base by throwing theball quickly to a fielder who tags him out. •/The pitcher turned aroundsuddenly and threw to the second baseman to pick the runner off second base./Compare: OFF BASE. 4. To catch and, especially in football, to intercept.•/Alert defenders picked off three of Jack’s passes./

[pick on]{v.} 1. {informal} To make a habit of annoying orbothering (someone); do or say bad things to (someone). •/Other boys pickedon him until he decided to fight them./ Syn.: PICK AT(3). 2. To single out;choose; select. •/He visited a lot of colleges, and finally picked onStanford./

[pick one’s teeth]{v. phr.} To clean one’s teeth with a toothpick.•/It is considered poor manners to pick one’s teeth in public./

[pick one’s way]{v. phr.} To go ahead carefully in difficult orunfamiliar places; advance with care. •/After nightfall we drove slowlyalong, picking our way until we found the right turn./ •/He picked his wayacross the rough and rocky hillside./

[pick out]{v.} 1. To choose. •/It took Mary a long time to pick outa dress at the store./ 2. To see among others; recognize; tell from others.•/We could pick out different places in the city from the airplane./ •/Wecould not pick Bob out in the big crowd./ Syn.: MAKE OUT(2). 3. To find byexamining or trying; tell the meaning. •/The box was so dirty we couldn’tpick out the directions on the label./ Compare: FIND OUT.

[pick over]{v.} To select the best of; look at and take what is goodfrom; choose from. •/She picked the apples over and threw out the badones./ •/We hurried to the big sale, but we were late and everything hadalready been picked over./

[pick the brains of]{v. phr.} To get ideas or information about aparticular subject by asking an expert. •/If you have time, I’d like to pickyour brains about home computers./

[pick to pieces] See: PICK APART, PICK HOLES IN.

[pickup]{n.}, (stress on "pick") 1. A rugged, small truck. •/When hegot into the lumber business, Max traded in his comfortable two-door sedan fora pickup./ 2. Scheduled meeting in order to transfer merchandise or stolengoods. •/The pickup goes down at 7 A.M. every day by the loading dock./•/The dope pushers usually make their pickup on Rush Street./ 3. A personwho is easy to persuade to go home with the suitor. •/Sue is said to be aneasy pickup./

[pick up]{v.} 1. To take up; lift. •/During the morning Mrs. Carterpicked up sticks in the yard./ 2. {informal} To pay for someone else.•/After lunch, in the restaurant, Uncle Bob picked up the check./ 3. Totake on or away; receive; get. •/At the next corner the bus stopped andpicked up three people./ 4. To get from different places at different times;a little at a time; collect. •/He had picked up rare coins in seaports allover the world./ 5. To get without trying; get accidentally. •/He picked upknowledge of radio just by staying around the radio station./ •/Billypicked up a cold at school./ 6a. To gather together; collect. •/When thecarpenter finished making the cabinet, he began picking up his tools./ 6b. Tomake neat and tidy; tidy up; put in order. •/Pick up your room before Mothersees it./ 6c. To gather things together; tidy a place up. •/It’s almostdinner time, children. Time to pick up and get ready./ 7. To catch the soundof. •/He picked up Chicago on the radio./ 8. To get acquainted with(someone) without an introduction; make friends with (a person of the othersex). •/Mother told Mary not to walk home by herself from the party becausesome stranger might try to pick her up./ 9. {informal} To take to thepolice station or jail; arrest. •/Police picked the man up for burglary./10. To recognize the trail of a hunted person or animal; find. •/State policepicked up the bandit’s trail./ •/The dogs picked up the fox’s smell./ 11.To make (someone) feel better; refresh. •/A little food will pick you up./12a. To increase (the speed); make (the speed) faster. •/The teacher told hersinging class to pick up the tempo./ •/The car picked up speed./ 12b. Tobecome faster; become livelier. •/The speed of the train began to pick up./•/After the band practiced for a while, the music began to pick up./ 13. Tostart again after interruption; go on with. •/The class picked up the storywhere they had left it before the holiday./ •/They met after five years,and picked up their friendship as if there had been no interruption./ 14.{informal} To become better; recover; gain. •/She picked up in herschoolwork./ •/He picked up gradually after a long illness./ •/Hisspirits picked up as he came near home./