Usage of "pine"

Geez, you gotta quit watching those old movies!

"Pine" used to be in all the popular songs from the 20's and 30's.

Does this usage sound archaic to a native speaker's ear Yes! or is it in modern use nowadays No! ?

CJ

I wouldn't say it's obsolete in British English. I wouldn't use it in a serious way though - more that something is being missed badly.

In it's more serious sense I've only heard it used of animals - dogs pining when they are left in kennels or when their 'friend' dog dies.

I've been stuck indoors for a couple of weeks and I'm pining for chocolate!

Or a joke country-western song title: I can plant myself a forest, I'm pining so for you!

I agree - I wouldn't call it obsolete or even archaic, but I wouldn't use it seriously. If, for instance, I wanted to have a serious talk with my daughter who had been moping around the house for two weeks because her boyfriend had dumped her, I wouldn't say, "Now honey, I know you feel awful. You're just got to stop pining for John. I know it's hard, but you have to try."

But in a play

Thanks !

The movie's title is "Cold Case", so it's not that old as you'd imagine, but somehow or other they used a word that is way past its sell-by date, considering that it was in use in the early nineties, and it comes as a complete shock to me ))))

So, "pine" is out then ! (out of my vocablurary, meaning that I will never use it again).