pith
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pith¹
- /pɪθ/ US, UK
Rhymes with -ɪθ
Where it comes from
The noun is derived from Middle English pith, pithe (“soft interior; pith, pulp”) [and other forms], from Old English piþa [and other forms], from Proto-Germanic *piþô, from earlier *piþō (oblique *pittan); further etymology unknown. Doublet of pit (“seed or stone inside a fruit”).
The verb Middle English pethen (“to give courage or strength”), derived from pith (noun), did not survive into modern English.
Cognates
* Dutch peen (“carrot”)
* Middle Low German peddek, peddik, piddek (“bone marrow; medulla; spinal cord; inner part of a horn or quill; (figurative) core, essence”) (the last spelling rare) (Low German Peddik (“core; pulp”))
* West Frisian piid (“pulp, kernel”)
noun piths
- The soft, spongy substance inside plant parts; specifically, the parenchyma in the centre of the roots and stems of many plants and trees. This ſvveete ſmelling Reede is of a darke dun colour, full of ioints and knees eaſie to be broken into ſmall ſplinters, hollovv and full of a certaine vvhite pith, cobvveb vviſe, ſomevvhat gummie in eating, and hanging in the teeth, and of a ſharpe bitter taſte.
- The albedo (“whitish inner portion of the rind”) of a citrus fruit.
-
The soft tissue inside a human or animal body or one of their organs; specifically, the spongy interior substance of a horn or the shaft of a feather.
Similar: medulla
-
Chiefly of animals: the soft tissue inside a spinal cord; the spinal marrow; also, the spinal cord itself.
Becauſe many do hold this opinion that this diſeaſe doth conſume the marrovv of the backe: […] [s]ome againe, do tvvine out the pith of the backe vvith a long vvire thruſt vp into the horſſes head, and ſo into his necke and backe, vvith vvhat reaſon I knovv not.
Similar: medulla
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Synonym of diploe (“the thin layer of soft, spongy, or cancellate tissue between the bone plates which constitute the skull”).
Similar: diploe
- The soft tissue of the brain. Verily if vvee take a right vievv of this laxe pith or marrovv in Mans head, neither our ſenſe nor underſtanding can diſcover any thing more in this ſubſtance that can pretend to ſuch noble operations as free Imagination and ſagacious collections of Reaſon, then vve can diſcern in a Cake of Sevvet o
- The soft inner portion of a loaf of bread. The berrie Coccum Gnidium, in colour reſembleth the Scarlet graine; in quantitie a pepper corne, but that it is bigger: of an ardent and cauſticke qualitie it is, and therefore they uſe to lap it in the ſoft crum or pith of a loafe of bread, and ſo ſvvallovv it, for feare it ſhould burne the throat
- The central or innermost part of something; the core, the heart. In these days folk still believed in witches and trembled at a curse; and this one, falling so pat, like a wayside omen, to arrest me ere I carried out my purpose, took the pith out of my legs.
-
The essential or vital part of something; the essence.
The pith of my idea is that people should choose their own work hours.
Similar: crux, gist, heart, heart and soul, inwardness, kernel, marrow, meat, medulla, nitty-gritty, nub, quintessence
- Physical power or strength; force, might. Iron bovves, and ſtele bovves, have bene of longe time, and alſo novv are uſed among the Turkes, but yet they muſt nedes be unprofitable. For if braſſe, iron, or ſtele, have their ovvne ſtrengthe and pithe in them, they be farrre^([sic]) above mans ſtrengthe: if they be made meete for mans ſtrengthe
- A quality of courage and endurance; backbone, mettle, spine.
- The energy, force, or power of speech or writing; specifically, such force or power due to conciseness; punch, punchiness. I founde in myne owneſelfe, that litle fruite there commeth of the goſpell, if a man reade it but ſluggiſhely, and ſuperficially renne it ouer. But in caſe a mã [man] do with diligent and exquiſite meditacion kepe hymſelf occupied therin, he ſhal fele a certaine vertue and pith ſuche as he ſhall not
- Chiefly in of (great) pith and moment: gravity, importance, substance, weight. For though my ryme be ragged, / Tattered and iagged, / Rudely rayne beaten, / Rusty and moughte eaten, / If ye take well therwith, / It hath in it some pyth.
verb piths · pithing · pithed
- To render insensate or kill (an animal, especially cattle or a laboratory animal) by cutting, piercing, or otherwise destroying the spinal cord.
- To extract the pith from (something or (figurative) someone). And yet, instead of exclaiming "Send this inconceivable Satanist to the stake," the respectable newspapers pith me by announcing "another book by this brilliant and thoughtful writer."
pith²
- /paɪθ/ US, UK
Rhymes with -aɪθ
Where it comes from
From pi (“constant representing the ratio of the circumference of a Euclidean circle to its diameter”) + -th (suffix forming ordinal numerals).
adjective pi-th
- The ordinal form of the number pi (π; approximately 3.14159…). The pith root of pi is approximately 1.439…
noun piths · pi-th
- One divided by pi, that is, 1/π (approximately 0.31831…). not only that, but your "radian" axis can be labelled as *being* in units of pis, as opposed to the redundancy of 0pi, pi/2, pi etc.; conversely, your circumferential measure can be rational (or units) and your radius can be transcendental (or piths .-)
Translations
Every language
noun soft, spongy substance inside plant parts
| Español | medula, médula, pulpa |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 귤락 gyullak |
| 日本語 | 髄 zui |
| 中文 | 髓 suǐ |
| हिन्दी | गूदा gūdā |
| Português | medula |
| Français | moelle |
| Deutsch | Mark |
| Italiano | midollino, midollo |
| Ελληνικά | ψίχα psícha |
| Română | măduvă, miez |
| Русский | сердцеви́на serdcevína |
| العربية | نُخَاع nuḵāʕ |
Talk about this word "pith." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/pith. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. pith. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/pith "pith." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/pith.Cite this
@misc{pith_2026,
title = {pith},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/pith},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
