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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.
Examples of opine in a Sentence
Julia Mueller, The Hill, 11 Apr. 2025
This is one reason which led to the fall of other large healthcare unicorns such as Babylon Health and most recently, 23andMe, both multi-billion dollar enterprises in their heyday; many have since opined that both lost their purpose during their meteoric rise.
—Dr. Sai Balasubramanian, M.d., Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025
He was diagnosed with dementia and the doctor opined that AF should not ever independently handle any finances at all.
—Carolyn Rosenblatt, Forbes, 19 Mar. 2025
Langley is in a good position to opine on the rapidly changing entertainment industry, and how things are shaking out between movies and TV.
—Eric Rosenbaum, CNBC, 9 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for opine
Cite this Entry
“Opine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/opine. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
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