pitch

PICH/pɪt͡ʃ/

Verbpitches, pitching, pitched

Noun pluralpitches

Adjectivepitcher, pitchest

54 meanings of pitch

Practice

1
throw (baseball)verbintransitive
In baseball, to throw the ball to the batter, or to play as the team's pitcher.
Who is pitching tonight?
She will pitch in the final.
UsageYou pitch for a team.
Note
2
highness of soundnouncountable or uncountable
How high or low a sound is, or the standard note used to tune instruments.
Her voice rose in pitch when she got excited.
A flute has a higher pitch than a tuba.
UsagePeople say perfect pitch, and a voice goes up in pitch.
Note
3
playing fieldnounAustraliaNew ZealandUKcountable
The field where a game such as soccer or rugby is played, or in cricket the strip between the wickets.
The players ran onto the pitch.
Rain left the pitch muddy.
UsageYou play on the pitch.
Similarfield, ground
Note
4
a sales talknouncountable
A talk or presentation that tries to sell an idea or product.
The salesman gave us his pitch about the new car.
Each team has five minutes to make its pitch.
UsageYou make a pitch to someone.
Similarpresentation, proposal, spiel
5
a delivery (baseball)nouncountable
In baseball, one throw of the ball by the pitcher to the batter.
The first pitch was a strike.
He hit a home run on the next pitch.
UsageIn baseball, a pitch is a throw, not the field.
Similarthrow, delivery
Note
6
sell (an idea)verbtransitive
To try to sell something or persuade people to accept an idea.
She pitched her invention to three companies.
Writers pitch story ideas to editors every day.
UsageYou pitch an idea to someone.
Similarpromote, sell, present, propose, market
7
set up campverbtransitive
To put up a tent by fixing it to the ground.
We pitched our tent by the river.
It's easier to pitch a tent before dark.
UsageSay pitch a tent or pitch camp.
Similarerect, raise, make
Oppositestrike, dismantle
Note
8
roof slopenouncountable or uncountable
How steeply something slopes, such as a roof, or a sloping part of a path.
The pitch of the roof is steep enough to shed snow.
The last part of the path has a very steep pitch.
Similarslope, incline, gradient, grade, angle
Note
9
intensitynouncountable
A level or degree of something, especially the highest point it reaches.
The crowd's excitement reached a fever pitch.
His anger rose to a pitch that frightened everyone.
UsagePeople often say fever pitch, or that feelings rise to a pitch.
Similarlevel, degree, intensity, height, peak
Note
10
tailor (to readers)verbtransitive
To set a talk or piece of writing at a certain level for a particular audience.
The teacher pitched the lesson at beginners.
You should pitch your speech a little higher for that crowd.
UsageYou pitch something at a group, like beginners.
Similaraim, target, gear, tailor, direct
11
campsite spotnounUKcountable
A place on a campsite where one tent or caravan can be set up.
We booked a pitch near the showers.
The campsite has forty pitches with electric hookups.
Similarsite, plot, spot, space
12
adjective
Very deep and complete, used almost always right before the words black or dark.
If you lose even once, that's it: The screen goes, like, the pitchest black ever, and you're [out].
2013, Dale E. Basye, Snivel: The Fifth Circle of HeckHere, pitchest means the most total, the deepest black.
UsageWrite pitch-black before a noun: a pitch-black night.
Note

Less common meanings

13
tarnouncountable or uncountable
A thick, black, sticky substance made from tar or oil, used to seal things.
The sailors covered the ropes with pitch.
Roofers spread hot pitch over the boards.
Similartar, bitumen
Note
14
rock up and downverbtransitive or intransitive
To move with the front going up and down, used about a ship or plane.
The boat pitched in the heavy waves.
Small planes pitch a lot in rough air.
Similartoss, lurch, rock, plunge, heave
Note
15
throw (anything)verbtransitive
To throw something, especially with a swing of the arm.
The children pitched stones into the pond.
Just pitch the ball to me.
Similarthrow, hurl, fling, cast, chuck
16
noununcountable
How far the front of a ship or plane tilts up or down.
The pilot checked the plane's pitch before landing.
The pilot watched the plane's pitch to keep the nose from rising too high.
Note
17
spacingnouncountable or uncountable
The distance between things that are evenly spaced, such as the teeth of a saw.
Screws with a small pitch have threads that sit close together.
The screw's pitch is one millimeter.
Similarspacing, interval
Note
18
nouncountable
In climbing, one section of a climb, from one resting point to the next.
The first pitch is easy, but the second is very steep.
They climbed six pitches before lunch.
Similarsection, stretch
Note
19
nouncountable
A throw of something, such as a ball or a horseshoe.
That was a good pitch, right onto the peg.
His last pitch landed the beanbag right in the hole.
Similarthrow, toss, cast
20
throw awayverbtransitive
To throw something away because it is not wanted.
Just pitch the old magazines.
She pitched the broken umbrella into the bin.
Similardiscard, dump, toss, chuck, scrap
Oppositekeep, retain
21
set at a slantverbtransitive
To set something at a slope, or to make it tilt, especially downward.
The workers pitched the roof steeply to shed rain.
Pitch the solar panels toward the south to catch more sun.
Similarslope, tilt, slant, angle, incline
Oppositelevel
Note
22
nouncountable or uncountable
A sticky substance that comes out of some trees, such as pines.
The pine pitch stuck to my fingers.
Bees collect pitch from tree buds.
Similarresin, sap, gum
Note
23
verbintransitive
To fall suddenly, especially forward, or to slope downward.
He tripped on the step and pitched forward onto the grass.
The roads in these hills pitch down steeply toward the river.
Similarlurch, plunge, slope, tumble
24
nouncountable
In golf, a short shot that goes high in the air and spins backward when it lands.
Her pitch landed near the hole and stopped almost at once.
He used a pitch to get the ball over the sand and onto the green.
Note
25
verbtransitive
In golf, to hit the ball in a short, high shot that spins backward when it lands.
Try to pitch the ball over the sand and onto the green.
She pitched her third shot close to the flag.
Similarloft
Note
26
verbintransitive
In cricket, of the ball, to hit the ground and bounce.
Fast bowlers try to make the ball pitch close to the batter's feet.
The ball pitched short and rose sharply toward the batter's chest.
Similarbounce, land
Note
27
nouncountable
The space in a market where one seller is allowed to set up.
She has had the same pitch at the Saturday market for years.
The flower seller lost his pitch when the market moved.
Similarspot, site
Note
28
nouncountable
A public spot where a street performer, a sex worker, or someone running an illegal game works.
The guitar player guarded his pitch outside the train station.
Police moved the card players off their pitch near the bridge.
Similarspot
Note
29
verbintransitive
To make a sound, or set a voice or song, at a certain level, high or low.
Her voice always pitches higher when she gets nervous.
Try not to let your voice pitch too high when you sing the last line.
Similarsound, sing
Note
30
noun
The angle of a propeller's blades, which sets how much air or water they push.
31
verb
To choose something, in the phrase 'pitch on' or 'pitch upon'.
Pitch upon the best course of life, and custom will render it the more easy.
a. 1694, John Tillotson, The Precepts of Christianity not grievousHere, pitch upon means decide on or choose.
32
noun
Importance or great seriousness, in old or literary use.
Enterprises of great pitch and moment.
c. 1599, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”Here, pitch means importance or weight.
33
verb
To put yeast into beer while you are making it.
34
noun
A dark, glassy volcanic rock that looks like hardened resin.
35
verb
To coat something with pitch, a thick, black, sticky material.
36
verb
To make dark.
37
nounrare
A place where armies fight.
Every other day they would spend half of the training hours on the battle pitch.
2015, SK Benton, Lives of Future-Past
38
noun
The very top or bottom point of something.
39
noun
The end of a piece of land that sticks out into the sea.
40
nounobsolete
The outer edges of the shoulders or hips.
Such breadth of ſhoulders as might mainely beare Olde Atlas burthen, twixt his manly pitch, A pearle more worth, then all the world is plaſte:
c. 1587, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. The First Part
41
noun
How high a hunting bird flies before it dives.
42
noundialectalBritish
How tall someone or some animal is.
43
noun
A straight drop in a cave that needs ropes or ladders.
44
noun
Where the ball bounces after it is bowled.
45
noun
A drop or fall.
46
noun
A section of a mine given to one worker, who is paid with some of its ore.
47
verb
To settle on the ground and pile up instead of melting, said of snow.
48
verbarchaic
To land after flying.
the tree whereon they [the bees] pitch
1707, J[ohn] Mortimer, The Whole Art of Husbandry
49
verb
To cover a road or bank with rough stones.
50
verb
To decide what something costs.
51
verbslang
To throw away a card to get an advantage.
52
verb
To charge at an enemy or line up to do so.
53
noun
The singer in a group without instruments who gives the note everyone else tunes to.
54
verb
To choose the key or tone for a song or speech.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of pitch apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 12–13, 22

From Old English 'pic', which came from Latin 'pix', meaning the sticky, tar-like substance. The adjective probably comes from 'pitch-black'.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

Pitch comes from Old English pic. en.wiktionary.org
Old English pic ultimately came from Latin pix. en.wiktionary.org
Latin pix means the sticky, tar-like substance. en.wiktionary.org
The adjective probably comes from pitch-black. en.wiktionary.org

Meanings 1, 3–11, 14–21, 23–28

From Middle English 'picchen', meaning to thrust in, fasten, or settle. It is a variant of the root that also gave us the word 'pick'.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

Pitch derives from Middle English picchen, meaning to thrust in, fasten, or settle. en.wiktionary.org
Pitch derives from a variant of the root that also produced pick. en.wiktionary.org

Meanings 2, 29

Unknown. It may come from or be influenced by the sense of 'inclination', 'level', or 'degree'.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

The origin of pitch in its musical sense is unknown. en.wiktionary.org
It may derive from, or have been influenced by, the sense meaning inclination, level, or degree. en.wiktionary.org