# How to Say Put a Pin in It in English: Audio & Practice (2026)

> "Put a pin in it" means to pause a topic and come back to it later.

- **Term:** put a pin in it
- **Part of speech:** idiom
- **Pronunciation:** /pʊt ə ˈpɪn ɪn ɪt/
- **English level (CEFR):** B2
- **Register:** Casual, Spoken
- **Region:** US and UK
- **Topic:** [Business jargon](https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/topics/business-jargon.md)
- **Lesson:** https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/put-a-pin-in-it
- **Last updated:** 2026-10-29

## Meaning

"Put a pin in it" means to pause a topic and come back to it later.

Think of pinning a note to a board so you don't lose it. In meetings, "Let's put a pin in that" politely stops a topic that is important but off the agenda. It is friendlier than "let's move on", because it promises to return. Like "take it offline", it works best when someone writes the topic down and actually comes back to it.

## When you hear it

During sprint planning, someone raises a big question about the pricing model that nobody can answer today.

## Examples

- **in a planning meeting:** "Let's put a pin in the pricing question and add it to Thursday's agenda."
- **in a design review:** "I want to discuss accessibility properly, so let's put a pin in it for now."
- **following up:** "Unpinning the topic from last week: here's the data on pricing."

## What native speakers say

- "Great question, let's put a pin in it and come back next week."
- "Can we put a pin in that until we have the data?"
- "Coming back to the thing we pinned earlier..."

## Common mistakes

- ✗ "Let's put a needle in it." → ✓ "Let's put a pin in it." (The idiom is fixed: always "pin".)
- ✗ "Let's put a pin on it." → ✓ "Let's put a pin in it." (Use "in", not "on".)
- ✗ "Put a pin in it. (and never return)" → ✓ "Let's put a pin in it. I'll add it to next week's agenda." (The phrase promises a return. Write the topic down.)

## Be careful

If you pin a topic, write it down and come back to it, or people stop trusting the phrase.

## Word forms

| Part of speech | Word | Example |
| --- | --- | --- |
| with that/this | put a pin in that | Let's put a pin in that. |
| past | put a pin in it | We put a pin in it last week. |


## Collocations

- **let's put a pin in that**: standard meeting phrase
- **put a pin in it for now**: pause temporarily
- **come back to it**: the follow-up

## Synonyms

- **park it**: put aside for later
- **table it**: postpone (US)
- **take it offline**: discuss outside the meeting

## Opposites

- dig into it now
- deep dive

## Practice

This lesson has 4 practice exercises with instant feedback on the page: https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/put-a-pin-in-it

## FAQ

### What does put a pin in it mean?

It means to pause a topic and return to it later.

### Is put a pin in it polite?

Yes. It's a friendly way to stop a topic without dismissing it.

### Is it 'pin in it' or 'pin on it'?

It is "put a pin in it".

### What is the difference between put a pin in it and take it offline?

Put a pin in it means come back later, maybe in this meeting. Take it offline means discuss outside the meeting.


## Related

- [parking lot](https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/parking-lot.md)
- [table this](https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/table-this.md)
- [timebox](https://app.speaktechenglish.com/learn/timebox.md)
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