pinfold

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Middle English pinfold, punfold, punfald, variants of Middle English pundfold, pundfald, from Old English pundfald (“pinfold”), equivalent to pound (“pen, enclosure”) +‎ fold.

Noun

pinfold (plural pinfolds)

  1. An open enclosure for animals, especially an area where stray animals were rounded up if their owners failed to properly supervise their use of common grazing land.
    • 1600, Edward Fairfax, The Jerusalem Delivered of Tasso, XIII, xx:
      These drawing near the wood, where close ypent / The wicked sprites in sylvan pinfolds were […]
    • 1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 331, about Redmire:
      A little further along the road is the pinfold where stray animals were penned until claimed by their owners.

Verb

pinfold (third-person singular simple present pinfolds, present participle pinfolding, simple past and past participle pinfolded)

  1. (transitive) To confine (animals) in a pinfold.
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