pitch

¹pitch

noun \ˈpich\

Definition of PITCH

1

: a black or dark viscous substance obtained as a residue in the distillation of organic materials and especially tars

2

: any of various bituminous substances

3

: resin obtained from various conifers and often used medicinally

4

: any of various artificial mixtures resembling resinous or bituminous pitches

Origin of PITCH

Middle English pich, from Old English pic, from Latin pic-, pix; akin to Greek pissa pitch, Old Church Slavic pĭcĭlŭ

First Known Use: before 12th century

Other Chemical Engineering Terms

alkali, cation, decant, hygroscopic, isotope, oxidize, slurry, solute, viscous

Rhymes with PITCH

bitch, ditch, fitch, flitch, glitch, hitch, itch, kitsch, niche, quitch, rich, snitch, stitch, such, switch, twitch, which, witch

²pitch

transitive verb

Definition of PITCH

: to cover, smear, or treat with or as if with pitch

First Known Use of PITCH

before 12th century

³pitch

verb

Definition of PITCH

transitive verb

1

: to erect and fix firmly in place <pitch a tent>

2

: to throw usually with a particular objective or toward a particular point <pitch hay onto a wagon>: as

a : to throw (a baseball) to a batter

b : to toss (as coins) so as to fall at or near a mark <pitch pennies>

c : to put aside or discard by or as if by throwing <pitched the trash into the bin>

3

a : to present or advertise especially in a high-pressure way : plug, promote

b : to attempt to persuade especially with a sales pitch

c : to present (a movie or program idea) for consideration (as by a TV producer)

4

a (1) : to cause to be at a particular level or of a particular quality <a test pitched at a 5th-grade reading level> (2) : to set in a particular musical key

b : to cause to be set at a particular angle : slope

5

: to utter glibly and insincerely

6

a : to use as a starting pitcher

b : to play as pitcher

7

: to hit (a golf ball) in a high arc with backspin so that it rolls very little after striking the green

8

: throw 14 <pitch a fit>

intransitive verb

1

a : to fall precipitately or headlong

b (1) of a ship : to have the bow alternately plunge precipitately and rise abruptly (2) of an aircraft, missile, or spacecraft : to turn about a lateral axis so that the forward end rises or falls in relation to the after end

c : buck 1

2

: encamp

3

: to hit upon or happen upon something <pitch upon the perfect gift>

4

: to incline downward : slope

5

a : to throw a ball to a batter

b : to play ball as a pitcher

c : to pitch a golf ball

6

: to make a sales pitch

— pitch into

1

: attack, assail

2

: to set to work on energetically

Origin of PITCH

Middle English pichen to thrust, drive, fix firmly, probably from Old English *piccan, from Vulgar Latin *piccare — more at pike

First Known Use: 13th century

⁴pitch

noun

Definition of PITCH

1

a : slope; also : degree of slope : rake

b : the distance between any of various things: as (1) : distance between one point on a gear tooth and the corresponding point on the next tooth (2) : distance from any point on the thread of a screw to the corresponding point on an adjacent thread measured parallel to the axis

c : the theoretical distance a propeller would advance longitudinally in one revolution

d : the number of teeth or of threads per inch

e : a unit of width of type based on the number of times a letter can be set in a linear inch

2

: the action or a manner of pitching; especially : an up-and-down movement — compare yaw

3

archaic : top, zenith

4

a : the relative level, intensity, or extent of some quality or state <tensions rose to a feverish pitch>

b (1) : the property of a sound and especially a musical tone that is determined by the frequency of the waves producing it : highness or lowness of sound (2) : a standard frequency for tuning instruments

c (1) : the difference in the relative vibration frequency of the human voice that contributes to the total meaning of speech (2) : a definite relative pitch that is a significant phenomenon in speech

5

a : a steep place : declivity

b : the portion of a route (as in mountain climbing or caving) between belay points

6

chiefly British

a : an outdoor site (as for camping or doing business)

b : playing field 1

7

: an all-fours game in which the first card led is a trump

8

a : an often high-pressure sales presentation

b : advertisement

c : recommendation, plug <made a pitch for tax cuts>

9

a : the delivery of a baseball by a pitcher to a batter

b : a baseball so thrown

c : pitchout 2

— pitched \ˈpicht\ adjective

Illustration of PITCH

First Known Use of PITCH

1542

Other Aeronautics/Aerospace Terms

airway, apron, corridor, dirigible, fishtail, flat-hat, vector

pitch

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

In music, position of a single sound in the complete range of sound; this quality varies with the number of vibrations per second (hertz, Hz) of the sounding body and is perceived as highness or lowness. A higher pitch has a higher number of vibrations. In Western music, standard pitches have long been used to facilitate tuning. A confusing variety of pitches prevailed until the 19th century, when the continual rise in pitch made some international agreement a matter of practical necessity. In 1939 the A above middle C was standardized as 440 Hz. See also interval; tuning and temperament.