piece 1 of 2

1
2
as in composition
a literary, musical, or artistic production presented a new interpretation of the piece by Mozart

Synonyms & Similar Words

3
4
as in portion
something belonging to, due to, or contributed by an individual member of a group believes his piece of the profits should be higher

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

piece

2 of 2

verb

Synonym Chooser

How is the word piece distinct from other similar nouns?

Some common synonyms of piece are division, fragment, member, part, portion, section, and segment. While all these words mean "something less than the whole," piece applies to a separate or detached part of a whole.

a puzzle with 500 pieces

When is division a more appropriate choice than piece?

While in some cases nearly identical to piece, division applies to a large or diversified part.

the manufacturing division of the company

When can fragment be used instead of piece?

While the synonyms fragment and piece are close in meaning, fragment applies to a part produced by or as if by breaking off.

only a fragment of the play still exists

Where would member be a reasonable alternative to piece?

In some situations, the words member and piece are roughly equivalent. However, member suggests one of the functional units composing a body.

a structural member

When might part be a better fit than piece?

The words part and piece can be used in similar contexts, but part is a general term appropriate when indefiniteness is required.

they ran only part of the way

When would portion be a good substitute for piece?

Although the words portion and piece have much in common, portion implies an assigned or allotted part.

cut the pie into six portions

When could section be used to replace piece?

The meanings of section and piece largely overlap; however, section applies to a relatively small or uniform part.

the entertainment section of the newspaper

In what contexts can segment take the place of piece?

The words segment and piece are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, segment applies to a part separated or marked out by or as if by natural lines of cleavage.

the retired segment of the population

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of piece
Noun
Still, many still celebrate the day as a piece of American history or as a way to honor Native Americans. MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025 The storm moved through northern Alaska late Sunday and pushed into the Arctic Sea early Monday, leaving communities to pick up the pieces in its wake. Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
At the core of Project Sherlock, named for Arthur Conan Doyle’s fictional detective, was artificial intelligence that could piece the data together, find leads for investigators and give situational awareness to cops on the beat. Rashi Shrivastava, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025 Over the past few weeks the Red Sox have been trying to piece the back of the rotation together, but manager Alex Cora indicated Wednesday that the club has settled on a plan for the remainder of the season. Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 17 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for piece
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piece
Noun
  • Among the artifacts retrieved was a fragment of an arcade arch that weighs more than 440 pounds.
    Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 11 Oct. 2025
  • The enzymes target specific chemical structures along the polymer, bind at those points, and cleave the chains into microbial-friendly fragments.
    Tejasri Gururaj, Interesting Engineering, 9 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • By comparing two types of borosilicate glass, one containing magnesium and one without, the team discovered that the diffusion of boron atoms depends strongly on the glass composition and the time it has been exposed to water.
    Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 16 Oct. 2025
  • Orbiting spacecraft can provide researchers with a basic idea of the moon's composition.
    Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 16 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • That would include gun-violence restraining orders and domestic violence protective orders, which are among several kinds of orders that compel a restrained person to surrender firearms.
    Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 13 Oct. 2025
  • Robinson was also charged with firearm counts and multiple obstruction-of-justice charges.
    Haadiza Ogwude, Cincinnati Enquirer, 13 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Eat lunch, which comes in large portions and uses vegetables harvested on the property, on the hotel restaurant’s terrace, which has an astonishing view.
    Emilio Parra Doiztua, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
  • During the fundraising portion of the evening, auctioneer Zachary Ian Krone encouraged attendees to donate to City of Hope’s cause.
    Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Shon and his collaborators, including Ruozhu Feng and Wei Wang, built their prototype with carbon electrodes.
    Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 16 Oct. 2025
  • Nearly every duke and earl and baron in England was competing to build great rare book collections, and lots and lots of fake manuscripts emerged.
    JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 16 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The comet bits have also spread a fair distance from it sideways, which is why some of the particles now intersect the Earth even though the comet's orbit does not.
    Joe Rao, Space.com, 17 Oct. 2025
  • The problem with opinions is, just like various bits of anatomy, everybody has one.
    Paul Cappiello, Louisville Courier Journal, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The researchers noted that torsional loading is not as strongly associated with injury risk as vertical loading, but future work may explore whether improved stroller design or posture cues could mitigate those twisting forces.
    Daniella Gray, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
  • The San Jose region’s faster bounce-back may be attributable in part to an easier commute to work than in San Francisco and the East Bay, and tech campuses with free parking, making in-office work more appealing, the Bay Area Council’s Saisz said.
    Ethan Baron, Mercury News, 13 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The statistics don’t indicate what kind of criminal charge each agency has filed with the DOJ – meaning that referrals from arrests made by ATF agents working immigration raids or city patrols, rather than gun cases, could be included in the data, TRAC said.
    Allison Gordon, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2025
  • At a news conference, police showed a video in which two people can be seen leaving a restaurant on Fountain Square Oct 13 and firing a gun at a restaurant, injuring two people.
    Matthew Cupelli, Cincinnati Enquirer, 15 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Piece.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piece. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.

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