Meaning of fine In English

• 0 good or good enough; healthy and well:

  • I felt terrible last night but I feel fine this morning.

  • The apartments are very small, which is fine for one person.

  • "Are you all right?" "Everything's just fine, thanks."

  • "I'll come to your place at eight." "Fine. See you then."

• 1 excellent or much better than average:

  • purveyors of fine wines and gourmet food

  • The world's finest collection of Impressionist paintings is housed in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.

  • This building is the finest example of its type.

• 2 very thin or in very small pieces or drops:

  • The baby's head was covered in fine blond hair.

  • The eruption had covered the town with a fine layer of ash.

  • Apply a fine line of highlighter along the middle of your top lip.

  • She has inherited her mother's fine (= delicate and beautiful) features.

• 3 very exact and delicate, or needing to be done, treated, or considered very carefully:

  • I understood in general what she was talking about, but some of the finer details/points were beyond me.

• 4 sunny and dry:

  • The forecast said it would be fine and dry today.

• 5 bad or not convenient:

  • That's a fine (= very unpleasant) thing to say about your father after all he's done for you!

  • He picked a fine time to leave us.

• 6 an amount of money that has to be paid as a punishment for not obeying a rule or law:

  • The maximum penalty for the offence is a $1,000 fine.

  • If found guilty, he faces six months in jail and a heavy (= severe) fine.

• 7 to charge someone an amount of money as a punishment for not obeying a rule or law:

  • Drivers who exceed the speed limit can expect to be fined heavily.

  • [ + two objects ] They fined him £100 for using threatening behaviour.

• 8 in a satisfactory way:

  • "Will a loan of $500 be sufficient?" "That will suit me fine."

  • It was working fine yesterday.

• 9 very good or very well; satisfactory or satisfactorily:

  • I was sick last night, but I feel fine this morning.

  • The apartments are very small, which is fine if you’re single.

  • The car was working fine yesterday.

  • "Is something wrong?" "No, everything’s just fine, thanks."

• 10 of excellent quality or much better than average:

  • Although still young, he is already a fine musician.

  • We had lunch in one of the city’s finest restaurants.

  • That’s a fine thing to say after all I’ve done for you.

• 11 very thin or in very small grains or drops:

  • fine blond hair

  • The paint comes out of the can in a fine spray.

  • She has her mother’s fine (= delicate and beautiful) features.

• 12 an amount of money that has to be paid as a punishment for not obeying a rule or law:

  • If found guilty, he faces six months in jail and a heavy fine.

• 13 an amount of money that someone has to pay as a punishment for not obeying a law or rule:

  • Copying cash is a federal offense and carries prison terms of up to 15 years and up to $5,000 in fines.

  • a heavy/stiff fine The new state law carries with it heavy fines for teens caught with cigarettes.

  • Bank officers said the decision to pay the fine would not affect its plans to pay off the loans within two years.

  • be subject to/face a fine Employers can face fines and other sanctions for hiring any of the 8 to 10 million illegal immigrants who are estimated to live in this country.

  • get/incur a fine If you go to court you could get a fine of up to a thousand dollars.

  • hand out/impose a fine There has been a proposal to impose fines for late completion of work.

  • Police can hand out on-the-spot fines to drunks.

• 14 to make someone pay an amount of money as a punishment for not obeying a law or rule:

  • The Financial Services Authority fined the bank a record £1m.

  • be fined £100/$75,000, etc. (for sth) Individuals can be charged interest and fined up to £1,000 for late submission of their tax return.

• 15 of very high quality:

  • a list of restaurants in the area that provide fine dining

  • a fine set of financial results