dice

1 of 2

noun

ˈdīs 

plural dice

1

a

: die sense 1

b

: a gambling game played with dice

2

plural also dices : a small cubical piece (as of food)

3

: a close contest between two racing-car drivers for position during a race

dice

2 of 2

verb

diced; dicing

transitive verb

1

a

: to cut into small cubes

diced onions

b

: to ornament with square markings

diced leather

2

a

: to bring by playing dice

dice himself into debt

b

: to lose by dicing

dice her money away

intransitive verb

1

: to play games with dice

… dice for drinks in the bar.

—Malcolm Lowry

2

: to take a chance

… the temptation to dice with death.

—Newsweek

dicer noun

Phrases

no dice

1

: of no avail : no use : futile

2

: no entry 1 sense 3

said no dice to my request

Synonyms of dice

Noun

• bones

Verb

• chop
• slice

Examples of dice in a Sentence

Noun

In this game, each player rolls the dice to see who plays first.

They were shooting dice in one of the bar's back rooms.

Verb

Dice the potatoes and add them to the soup.

quickly diced some peppers and onions and threw them into the stew

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The handy gadget is designed with stainless steel blades—including two interchangeable chopping blades and four slicing blades—that seamlessly dices, slices, juliennes, grates, and ribbons potatoes, zucchini, onions, peppers, tomatoes, and more. —Alicia Geigel, Southern Living, 1 Dec. 2025

Fullstar The Original Pro Vegetable Chopper Slash your prep time in half with this nifty vegetable chopper that can chop, dice, spiral, and ribbon your produce any which way, all while keeping your fingers out of harm’s way. —Clara McMahon, PEOPLE, 1 Dec. 2025

Verb

Finely dice and mix chili peppers into salsa, guacamole, or hummus. —Lauren Panoff, Verywell Health, 4 Dec. 2025

With 12 knives that slice, chop, and dice with minimal effort (and a sharpening blade to keep their edges pristine), whipping up more elaborate meals is a bit easier. —Isabel Garcia, PEOPLE, 2 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English dyce, from dees, dyce, plural of dee die entry 2

Verb

Middle English dycen, from dyce dice entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing dice

• a roll of the dice
• loaded dice
• load the dice
• roll the dice
• slice and dice

Rhymes for dice

• feis
• gneiss
• grice
• ice
• lice
• mice
• slice
• spice
• splice
• thrice
• trice
• twice

Kids Definition

dice

1 of 2 noun

ˈdīs 

plural dice

1

: die entry 2 sense 1

2

: a gambling game played with dice

dice

2 of 2 verb

diced; dicing

1

: to cut into small cubes

diced carrots

2

: to play games with dice

dicer noun