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

Noun

• bones
• die

Verb

• chop
• hash
• mince

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

Devils roll the dice, angels roll their eyes, and sneaky EDM remixes catch Taylor Swift by surprise. —Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 16 Apr. 2024

Tabletop games, such as Risk and Clue, are the most popular segment of board games, closely followed by card and dice games like Uno and Pandemic: The Cure. —Saira Mueller, CNN, 11 Apr. 2024

They’re just told, well, roll the dice and hope for the best. —Jason Kehe, WIRED, 10 Apr. 2024

This Barbie continues to roll the dice with film adaptations. —Jessica Wang, EW.com, 10 Apr. 2024

These dice give her the opportunity to try out different styles of art and express her creativity. —Moriah Mason, Southern Living, 5 Apr. 2024

But despite the best analysis and preparation, the dice didn’t always go Beane’s way, either. —Laurence Miedema, The Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2024

All the swipe-y magnetic strip stuff, though, no dice. —David Pierce, The Verge, 24 Mar. 2024

One group was given dice that always rolled a three, while the other group was given dice that always came up nine. —Bryce Hoffman, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024

Verb

Stir in both cans diced tomatoes and next 4 ingredients. —Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 30 Mar. 2024

Here’s a trick for dicing them in advance and using them in a salad dressing. —Cathy Thomas, Orange County Register, 25 Feb. 2024

Amanda effortlessly dices red bell pepper and tomato and adds them to the pan. —Jordan P. Hickey, Longreads, 22 Feb. 2024

Aligning all the connections properly means the chip must be diced to much greater tolerances than is needed for microbump technologies. —IEEE Spectrum, 21 Feb. 2024

Why not just add more fire and dice around the place to spruce it up? —Sponsored Content, The Mercury News, 21 Feb. 2024

Try these expert tips from Crumble Smith: Switch up the texture: Instead of slicing or dicing your apples, use a grater to shred them finely before adding to oatmeal, baked goods or smoothies. —Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 16 Jan. 2024

Katherine Garr led the team in scoring with 23 points, hitting three 3-pointers and also dicing up the visitors on drives and cuts to the basket. —Joseph Dycus, The Mercury News, 4 Feb. 2024

To dice the tomato, cut it in half lengthwise, through the stem and down through its pert bottom. —G. Daniela Galarza, Washington Post, 11 Jan. 2024

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
• no dice
• roll the dice
• slice and dice

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