opine

verb

ō-ˈpīn 

opined; opining

intransitive verb

: to express opinions

You may opine about anything you want.

transitive verb

: to state as an opinion

opined that the nominee was not fit to serve on the Supreme Court

Did you know?

We are not opining—that is, expressing our opinion—when we say that opine is not a back-formation of opinion, though the two words do share a common ancestry. A back-formation is a word formed by the subtraction of part of an existing word; for instance, the verb bartend is a back-formation of the noun bartender. Opine and opinion, however, both entered English independently, taking different routes from their mutual roots in the Latin verb opīnārī, meaning “to have in mind” or “to think.” Opinion arrived in the 14th century, while opine followed about a century later.

Synonyms

• allow
• comment
• editorialize
• note
• observe
• reflect
• remark
• weigh in

Examples of opine in a Sentence

Many people opine that the content of Web pages should be better regulated.

You can opine about any subject you like.

Recent Examples on the Web

Over the years, numerous cast members have joined the show’s creator and producer, Lorne Michaels, in opining that Seagal is among the worst hosts in its history, due to his difficult behavior in his sole outing in April 1991. —Matt Grobar, Deadline, 15 Jan. 2025

The childhood friend opined that Sean’s alleged reprehensible actions could also be linked to his youth. —Marc Griffin, VIBE.com, 14 Jan. 2025

The possibility of college football completely breaking away from the NCAA has been debated and opined about in the era of name, image and likeness and conference realignment. —Ryan Gaydos, Fox News, 29 Dec. 2024

The New York Post also opined that Meghan’s return to Instagram could be her way of seizing back control of the narrative around her public image. —Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 2 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English opinen "to hold an opinion, think (that something is the case)," borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French opiner "to express one's view, be of the opinion (that)," borrowed from Latin opīnārī "to hold as an opinion, think, have in mind," of obscure origin

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

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Kids Definition

opine

verb

ō-ˈpīn 

opined; opining

: to have or express an opinion