English dictionary — definitions & meanings

pictorialism

noun

A school of artistic photography that emphasized using photography to mimic certain styles of contemporary painting, that flourished in the late 19th and early 20th centuries

picture

noun

A drawing, painting, or photograph representing something.

pictured

adj

Shown in a photograph or picture.

pictures

noun

The cinema, or a trip to see a film (chiefly British, slightly dated).

picturesque

adj

Charmingly attractive, as if it belonged in a painting.

picturing

noun

The act of imagining or depicting something.

piddle

noun

Piss: urine.

piddling

adj

Insignificant, negligible, paltry, trivial, useless.

piddly

adj

Small, inconsequential, or not worth spending time on.

pidge

noun

Informal short form of "pigeon".

pidgin

noun

An amalgamation of two disparate languages, used by two populations having no common language as a lingua franca to communicate with each other, lacking formalized grammar and having a small, utilitarian vocabulary and no native speakers. The speech is slow and supported by mime and gesture.

pie

noun

A baked dish with a pastry crust and a filling, sweet or savoury.

piebald

adj

Spotted or blotched, especially in black and white.

piece

noun

A part of something larger, especially one that can be separated from the rest.

pieced

adj

Made by joining separate parts together.

piecemeal

adj

Made or done in pieces or one stage at a time.

piecen

verb

To join; piece (together); fay.

piecing

noun

The act of joining separate parts together, or a patch used to do so.

pied

adj

Having patches of two or more colours, especially black and white.

Piedmont

noun

A stretch of gently sloping land lying at the base of a mountain range.

pier

noun

A raised platform that extends from the shore out over water, used for boats or entertainment.

pierce

verb

To make a hole through something, usually with something sharp.

pierced

adj

Punctured or perforated, or having a body piercing.

piercing

adj

Sharp and penetrating, whether describing a look, sound, or cold.

pierogi

noun

A square- or crescent-shaped dumpling of unleavened dough, stuffed with sauerkraut, cheese, mashed potatoes, cabbage, onion, meat, or any combination of these, or with a fruit filling.

Pierre

name

A masculine given name, the French form of Peter.

Pierrot

name

A stock character of French pantomime, a sad clown dressed in white.

Piers

name

A masculine given name, a Middle English form of Peter.

Pierson

name

An English surname meaning "son of Piers".

Pies

name

An informal clipped nickname for the Magpies, used for various sports teams.

piet

noun

An informal British name for the magpie, a black-and-white bird known for its harsh call and habit of collecting shiny objects.

Pietro

name

A masculine given name, the Italian form of Peter.

piety

noun

Deep devotion and respect toward God or religious duty.

piff

intj

An exclamation of annoyance or contempt; pish; pshaw.

piffle

verb

To act or speak in a futile, ineffective, or nonsensical manner.

pig

noun

A farm animal with a snout and cloven hooves, raised for meat.

Pigalle

name

A district and square in Paris, France, known for its nightlife.

pigeon

noun

A plump grey bird common in cities, known for its cooing call.

pigeonhole

noun

One of an array of open compartments for housing pigeons in a dovecote or pigeon loft.

pigeonholing

noun

The classification of disparate entities into narrow and often unfair categories.

piggish

adj

greedy or gluttonous

piggy

noun

A child's word for a pig, or an informal word for a toe.

piggybac

noun

A transposon used in genetic engineering

piggyback

adv

Carried on someone's back or shoulders.

pigheaded

adj

Stubborn to an unreasonable or foolish degree.

pigheadedness

noun

The condition of being pigheaded.

piglet

noun

A baby pig.

pigmeat

noun

The meat or flesh of a pig, used especially for food; pork.

pigment

noun

A substance that gives colour to something, such as paint, skin, or plant cells.

pigmentation

noun

The natural colouring of skin, hair, eyes or other living tissue, produced by pigments such as melanin.

pigpen

noun

An enclosure where pigs are kept; a pigsty.

PIGS

name

A now-outdated financial-media acronym for Portugal, Italy, Greece, and Spain, used during the European debt crisis to describe countries with struggling economies and heavy government debt.

pigskin

noun

Leather made from a pig's hide, or (informally, American English) a football.

pigstick

noun

A waterjet disruptor used to disable explosive devices.

pigsty

noun

A pen where pigs are kept.

pigswill

noun

swill: slops fed to pigs

pigwidgeon

noun

A small or petty person, creature or object, especially a fairy, dwarf, imp, or elf.

pika

noun

A small, round-eared mammal related to rabbits rather than rodents, found in mountainous parts of North America and Asia.

Pikachu

noun

A yellow, mouse-like Pokémon character with red cheeks and a lightning-bolt tail, known for its electric attacks.

pike

noun

A long spear once carried by foot soldiers, used for thrusting rather than throwing.

pikelet

noun

A thick type of sweet pancake.

piker

noun

A soldier armed with a pike, a pikeman.

Pil

name

A Korean given name element or surname.

pilaf

noun

A rice (or other grain) dish cooked in seasoned broth, often with meat or vegetables mixed in.

pilar

adjective

Relating to or covered in hair.

Pilate

name

Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor who, according to the Bible, ordered the crucifixion of Jesus.

Pilates

noun

A system of controlled exercises focused on core strength, flexibility, and posture, developed in the early 1900s.

pilch

noun

A gown or case of skin, or one trimmed or lined with fur.

pilchard

noun

Any of various small oily fish related to herrings, family Clupeidae.

pile

noun

A number of things heaped or stacked on top of each other.

piled

adjective

Heaped or stacked up.

piles

noun

A large amount of something.

pileus

noun

The cap of a mushroom.

pilfer

verb

To steal in small quantities, or articles of small value; to practise petty theft.

pilfering

noun

The act of stealing small, usually low-value items.

pilgrim

noun

A person who travels to a place of religious significance.

pilgrimage

noun

A journey made to a sacred or meaningful place.

piling

noun

A structural support post, often one of several driven into the ground beneath a building or pier.

Pilkington

name

A surname of English origin, from a place name in Lancashire.

pilkinton

name

An unincorporated community in Powhatan County, Virginia, United States.

pill

noun

A small solid tablet of medicine meant to be swallowed.

pillage

verb

To loot or plunder a place by force, typically during war.

Pillai

name

A surname of Tamil origin.

pillar

noun

A tall vertical post, usually supporting part of a building.

pillbox

noun

A small box in which pills are kept.

pillock

noun

British informal term for a stupid or annoying person.

pillory

noun

A framework on a post, with holes for the hands and head, used as a means of punishment and humiliation.

pillow

noun

A soft cushion used to support the head while lying down.

pillow princess

noun

A person, most often a woman in a lesbian or queer context, who likes to receive sexual attention but does not give it in return.

pillow talk

noun

Quiet, intimate conversation between lovers in bed, especially after sex.

pillowcase

noun

A removable fabric cover that fits over a pillow.

Pillsbury

name

A surname, also widely known as an American food brand.

pilot

noun

A person who operates the controls of an aircraft.

pilotage

noun

The use of landmarks to guide a vessel or aircraft to its destination.

pilothouse

noun

A wheelhouse.

piloting

noun

The skill or act of navigating a vehicle, especially by reference to landmarks or fixed points.

pilus

noun

A hairlike appendage found on the cell surface of many bacteria.

Pim

name

A Dutch masculine given name, often a short form of Willem.

pimento

noun

A mild, sweet red pepper used in cooking and to stuff olives.

pimiento

noun

Synonym of pimento, a cultivar of Capsicum annuum.

pimp

noun

A person who arranges clients for prostitutes and takes a share of their earnings.

pimpernel

noun

A small wild plant with tiny red, white, or purple flowers, especially the scarlet pimpernel.

pimping

noun

The activity of managing and profiting from prostitutes.

pimple

noun

A small, inflamed, often pus-filled spot on the skin.

pin

noun

A short, thin, pointed piece of metal used to fasten things together, such as fabric.

pinafore

noun

A sleeveless dress, often similar to an apron, generally worn over other clothes, and most often worn by young girls as an overdress.

piñata

noun

A hollow figure of papier-mâché or thin card, filled with sweets and small toys and hung up at a party so that blindfolded children can hit it with a stick until it bursts.

pinay

noun

A Filipina; a citizen or local inhabitant of the Philippines, and those descending from such, who is female.

pinball

noun

An arcade game played on a sloped table, where a player launches and controls a metal ball to hit targets and score points.

pincer

noun

One half of a gripping claw or tool, or (in plural) the tool or claw itself.

pincers

noun

A hand tool with two pivoted, blunt jaws used for gripping or pulling.

pinch

verb

To squeeze a bit of skin or an object tightly between the thumb and finger.

pinche

adjective

In Mexican Spanish slang, a vulgar intensifier placed before a noun to express contempt or annoyance, roughly equivalent to 'damn' or 'fucking'.

pinched

adjective

Looking thin, tense, or drawn, especially from cold, worry, or hunger.

pincher

noun

A person or thing that pinches, as in squeezing; e.g. a miser or penny pincher.

Pinches

name

A surname.

pinching

adjective

Causing a tight, squeezing sensation.

pinchpenny

noun

One who spends little money; one who is very frugal or cautious with money.

Pindar

name

The name of an ancient Greek lyric poet celebrated for his odes.

pine

noun

An evergreen coniferous tree with needle-like leaves, or the wood it produces.

pineal

adj

Relating to the pineal gland, a small pinecone-shaped gland in the brain that produces melatonin.

pineapple

noun

A large tropical fruit with spiky skin, sweet yellow flesh, and a crown of stiff leaves.

pinecone

noun

A conical seed-bearing structure produced on a pine tree.

Pineda

name

A Spanish surname, often found in Spain and Latin America.

pinewood

noun

Wood from a pine tree, or a forest made up mainly of pine trees.

Piney

adj

Having the smell, look, or character of pine trees.

ping

noun

A short, high-pitched sound, or (in computing) a small network signal used to check if a device is reachable.

Pinged

name

A rare surname of Welsh-influenced origin.

pinging

noun

The act of making or sending repeated pings, as with sonar or over a network.

pingle

noun

A small piece of enclosed ground.

pingrang

name

Synonym of Pyongyang: the Mandarin Chinese-derived name (capital city of North Korea).

pinhead

noun

The small, rounded head of a pin, often used to describe something tiny.

pinheaded

adj

Having a head that is unusually tapered or small.

pining

noun

The act of longing painfully for someone or something.

pinion

noun

The joint of a bird's wing farthest from the body.

pink

adj

Having a pale reddish colour, a mix of red and white.

pinken

verb

To become pink.

pinker

adj

More pink; having a stronger pink colour than something else.

Pinkerton

noun

A private investigator or security agent, especially one historically employed to break strikes or guard property.

pinkie

noun

The smallest finger on the hand, farthest from the thumb.

pinko

noun

A socialist, particularly one who is not completely communist.

pinks

noun

A group of garden flowers, related to carnations, known for their fragrance and fringed petals.

pinky

noun

The smallest finger or toe.

pinna

noun

The visible part of the ear in most therians that resides outside of the head, the auricle; outer ear excluding the ear canal.

pinnacle

noun

The highest point of achievement or success.

pinned

adj

Fastened, held in place, or trapped with a pin or similar force.

pinning

noun

The act of fastening or holding something in place with a pin, or, in wrestling, holding an opponent down.

pinnule

noun

Any of the ultimate leaflets of a bipinnate or tripinnate leaf; a subleaflet.

Pino

name

A surname of Italian and Spanish origin, also used as a masculine given name diminutive.

Pinocchio

noun

A person who lies frequently, referencing the storybook character whose nose grew when he lied.