What does "pitchfork" mean?
An agricultural tool comprising a fork with sparse, light tines, attached to a long handle, used for pitching hay (especially loose hay) high up onto a stack (as on a wagon or haystack, or into a haymow).
Pitchfork
/ˈpɪt͡ʃˌfɔɹk/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An agricultural tool comprising a fork with sparse, light tines, attached to a long handle, used for pitching hay (especially loose hay) high up onto a stack (as on a wagon or haystack, or into a haymow).
- Grammar: pitchfork is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: arts site, bowl, buffer, cast.
- Useful contrasts: catch, disengage, lawful calm.
- Usage evidence: If you accidentally step on a dirty pitchfork, make sure you have your tetanus shot.
How to use "pitchfork"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "pitchfork" 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 "pitchfork" 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 "pitchfork" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "pitchfork" 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 "pitchfork" 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 "arts site" 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 "pitchfork", 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 An agricultural tool comprising a fork with sparse, light tines, attached to a long handle, used for pitching hay (especially loose hay) high up onto a stack (as on a wagon or haystack, or into a haymow).
- 2 a long-handled hand tool with sharp widely spaced prongs for lifting and pitching hay wordnet
- 3 A similar fork with slightly more and heavier tines, used for mucking stalls and pitching soiled bedding into a wagon or manure spreader.
"After my second illness, being too old for “piggy-back rides”, I generally sat in 'Resting Nuke' on a seat naturally formed in a low branch of a cedar, watching relatives down in the bay with pitchforks furiously digging out long black slithery "cockworms" from the muddy sands of Sinky Bay."
- 4 Any fork used for farm labor, even a digging fork (but such usage is often considered ignorant by experienced farmers). broadly, informal
- 5 A tuning fork. rare
"I went around with a pitchfork [tuning fork] in my pocket, and I'd hit it whenever I thought of it, and I developed perfect pitch […]"
Verb
- 1 To toss or carry with a pitchfork. transitive
"The hay was soon pitchforked onto the wagon."
- 2 lift with a pitchfork wordnet
- 3 To throw suddenly. figuratively, transitive
"We have taken an age-old country, and we have suddenly, in 30 years, pitchforked it into the middle of the factory system."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Example
"If you accidentally step on a dirty pitchfork, make sure you have your tetanus shot."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "pitchfork"?
Common synonyms include: arts site, bowl, buffer, cast, catapult, chuck.
How do you use "pitchfork" in a sentence?
If you accidentally step on a dirty pitchfork, make sure you have your tetanus shot.
How do you pronounce "pitchfork"?
Pronounced /ˈpɪt͡ʃˌfɔɹk/.
Etymology
From Middle English pichfork, pycchefork, pychforke, pikeforke, pikkforke, pic-forcke, equivalent to pitch + fork.