Main Entry: ¹pit

Pronunciation: \ˈpit\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Old English pytt (akin to Old High German pfuzzi well), from Latin puteus well, pit

Date: before 12th century

1 a (1) : a hole, shaft, or cavity in the ground (2) : mine (3) : a scooped-out place used for burning something (as charcoal) b : an area often sunken or depressed below the adjacent floor area: as (1) : an enclosure in which animals are made to fight each other (2) : a space at the front of a theater for the orchestra (3) : an area in a securities or commodities exchange in which members trade (as stocks)
2 a : hell 1a —used with the b : a place or situation of futility, misery, or degradation c plural : worst <it's the pits>
3 : a hollow or indentation especially in the surface of an organism: as a : a natural hollow in the surface of the body b : one of the indented scars left in the skin by a pustular disease : pockmark c : a minute depression in the secondary wall of a plant cell functioning in the intercellular movement of water and dissolved material
4 : any of the areas alongside an auto racecourse used for refueling and repairing the cars during a race —often used in plural with the