What does "pit" mean?
A hole in the ground.
Pit
/pɪt/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A hole in the ground.
- Grammar: pit is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: cavity, orchestra pit, stone, abysm.
- Useful contrasts: balcony, combine, cover.
- Usage evidence: He fell into the bottomless pit.
How to use "pit"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "pit" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "pit" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "pit" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "pit" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "pit" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "cavity" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "pit", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A hole in the ground.
"The meadow around the town is full of old pits."
- 2 A seed inside a fruit; a stone or pip inside a fruit. Northern-US
"Near-synonym: pip"
- 3 A pit bull terrier. informal
"I resolved to find all my pits good homes and to get out of the rescue and breeding business."
- 4 Initialism of personal income tax. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable
- 5 a workplace consisting of a coal mine plus all the buildings and equipment connected with it wordnet
Show 38 more definitions
- 6 An area at a racetrack used for refueling and repairing the vehicles during a race.
"Two drivers have already gone into the pit this early in the race."
- 7 The core of an implosion nuclear weapon, consisting of the fissile material and any neutron reflector or tamper bonded to it.
"[...] weapons "pits" (the plutonium components of nuclear weapons, named by analogy with the pit of a fruit such as a peach), [...]."
- 8 Initialism of programmable interval timer. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable
- 9 lowered area in front of a stage where an orchestra accompanies the performers wordnet
- 10 The section of a marching band containing mallet percussion instruments and other large percussion instruments too large to be marched, such as the tam-tam; the front ensemble. Can also refer to the area on the sidelines where these instruments are placed.
- 11 Initialism of precision immobilization technique: a method for ending car chases by causing a controlled collision, forcing the pursued car into a spin. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable
- 12 a surface excavation for extracting stone or slate wordnet
- 13 A mine.
- 14 Initialism of pursuit intervention technique: the same method for ending car chases. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable
- 15 a trap in the form of a concealed hole wordnet
- 16 A hole or trench in the ground, excavated according to grid coordinates, so that the provenance of any feature observed and any specimen or artifact revealed may be established by precise measurement.
"The exact sites of Feng and Hao have yet to be verified, but seven pits containing chariots, horses and other Zhou burial objects were discovered at Fengxi, and a concentration of Western Zhou relics and tombs was found in the area of Doumen in Changan County on the east bank of the Feng River."
- 17 Initialism of parallel immobilization technique: the same method for ending car chases. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable
- 18 (auto racing) an area at the side of a racetrack where the race cars are serviced and refueled wordnet
- 19 A trading pit.
- 20 (commodity exchange) the part of the floor of a commodity exchange where trading in a particular commodity is carried on wordnet
- 21 An armpit. colloquial
- 22 an enclosure in which animals are made to fight wordnet
- 23 A luggage hold.
- 24 (Christianity) the abode of Satan and the forces of evil; where sinners suffer eternal punishment wordnet
- 25 A small surface hole or depression, a fossa. countable
"[The researchers] noticed many of their pieces of [plastic marine] debris sported surface pits around two microns across. Such pits are about the size of a bacterial cell. Closer examination showed that some of these pits did, indeed, contain bacteria, […]."
- 26 a sizeable hole (usually in the ground) wordnet
- 27 The indented mark left by a pustule, as in smallpox.
- 28 the hard inner (usually woody) layer of the pericarp of some fruits (as peaches or plums or cherries or olives) that contains the seed wordnet
- 29 The grave, underworld or Hell.
"Back to the infernal pit I drag thee chained."
- 30 a concavity in a surface (especially an anatomical depression) wordnet
- 31 An enclosed area into which gamecocks, dogs, and other animals are brought to fight, or where dogs are trained to kill rats.
"as fiercely as two game-cocks in the pit"
- 32 Formerly, that part of a theatre, on the floor of the house, below the level of the stage and behind the orchestra; now, in England, commonly the part behind the stalls; in the United States, the parquet; also, the occupants of such a part of a theatre.
- 33 Part of a casino which typically holds tables for blackjack, craps, roulette, and other games.
- 34 Only used in the pits. in-plural, slang
"His circus job was the pits, but at least he was in show business."
- 35 A mosh pit. slang
"Because the museum was closed for renovation, the school decided to bring its fourth-graders to the pit at a Cannibal Corpse gig instead."
- 36 The center of the line.
"The ball carrier can be with or without a football. For the “Head-On” tackle have the “Ball Carrier” stand right in front of the pit and face the tackler."
- 37 The emergency department of a hospital. slang
- 38 In tracheary elements, a section of the cell wall where the secondary wall is missing, and the primary wall is present. Pits generally occur in pairs and link two cells.
- 39 A bed. slang
"Many Bacardi & Cokes later I climbed up into my pit and fell into a deep sleep, and woke up at one thirty in the morning and threw up my tea."
- 40 An undesirable location, especially an unclean one. informal
"This house is a total pit. We've got to do some cleaning!"
- 41 A bleak, depressing state of mind. figuratively
"He was in a pit of despair."
- 42 Short for dish pit abbreviation, alt-of
"Get back to the pit, dish bitch!"
- 43 On a compact disc or similar recording medium, a tiny sunken area representing part of the encoded data.
Verb
- 1 To make pits in; to mark with little hollows. transitive
"Exposure to acid rain pitted the metal."
- 2 To remove the stone from a stone fruit or the shell from a drupe. transitive
"One must pit a peach to make it ready for a pie."
- 3 To use the PIT maneuver, especially during a car chase.
- 4 remove the pits from wordnet
- 5 To put (an animal) into a pit for fighting. transitive
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 set into opposition or rivalry wordnet
- 7 To bring (something) into opposition with something else. transitive
"Are you ready to pit your wits against one of the world's greatest puzzles?"
- 8 mark with a scar wordnet
- 9 To return to the pits during a race for refuelling, tyre changes, repairs etc. intransitive
"Bottas had to pit earlier than expected for fresh tyres. Hamilton followed him in next time around and the two drivers were instructed to stay off the kerbs to protect their tyres."
Proper Noun
- 1 Abbreviation of Pittsburgh. abbreviation, alt-of
Example
"He fell into the bottomless pit."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "pit"?
Common synonyms include: cavity, orchestra pit, stone, abysm, abyss, abysses.
How do you use "pit" in a sentence?
He fell into the bottomless pit.
How do you pronounce "pit"?
Pronounced /pɪt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English pit, pet, püt, from Old English pytt, from Proto-West Germanic *puti, from Latin puteus (“trench, pit, well”), although there are phonetic difficulties.
Etymology 2
From Dutch pit (“kernel, core”), from Middle Dutch pitte, from Proto-Germanic *pittan (compare dialectal German Pfitze (“pimple”)), oblique of Proto-Germanic *piþō. Compare pith.
Etymology 3
Shortening.
Etymology 4
From PIT maneuver.