📖 P — The English dictionary · page 28

picnic — Everyday, meaning 1: A picnic is a meal eaten outside, often in a park or on a beach, sitting on a blanket.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To picnic is to have a picnic.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: «No picnic» means not easy: «Moving house is no picnic».↗ Example: They took 12 sandwiches to the picnic.↗ · 8 friends went on a picnic.↗ · Each person at the picnic got 2 apples.↗ · How many cups are needed for the picnic?↗ · We had a picnic by the lake.↗ · Pack the picnic basket with fruit and water.↗ · Ants crawled all over our picnic blanket.↗ · Take your rubbish home after a picnic.↗ · Learning to skate was no picnic!↗ · I remember when I went out to a picnic with the furrier's family, on the day his daughter was betrothed,--it seems as if it only happened yesterday.↗

picture — Everyday, meaning 1: A picture is a drawing, painting or photo.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To picture something means to see it in your mind, to imagine it.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: The picture can mean the general idea of a situation: get the picture.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: In old use, «the pictures» means the cinema.↗ Everyday, meaning 5: A picture can also be a lovely view or scene that you look at.↗ Example: Sara drew 5 pictures each day.↗ · The album holds 6 pictures on each page.↗ · The picture is 30 cm wide and 20 cm tall.↗ · Draw a picture to solve the problem.↗ · Can you picture a city under the sea?↗ · We took pictures of the waterfall.↗ · My little sister reads picture books.↗ · Hang the picture straight on the wall.↗ · Look at the picture and describe what you see.↗ · The vowel letters, however, the letters of the Tetra- grammaton, are images and pictures of superior angels.↗ (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914))↗

picturesque — Everyday, meaning 1: Very pretty, like a picture or a postcard, especially an old village or a countryside view.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (of language) Vivid and colourful, full of interesting description.↗ Example: We stayed in a picturesque fishing village.↗ · The cottage by the river was picturesque.↗ · The Cotswolds are full of picturesque villages.↗ · The harbour looked picturesque at sunset.↗ · Grandad has a picturesque way of telling stories.↗ · The train ran through picturesque mountains.↗ · The streets were rather irregular, it is true, but still this added to their picturesque appearance.↗

pidgin — Everyday, meaning 1: A simple language made up when people who speak different languages need to talk, often for trade, mixing words from both.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (informal) Broken or very simple speech in a language you do not know well: «pidgin French».↗ Example: A pidgin has a small vocabulary and simple grammar.↗ · Nigerian Pidgin is spoken by millions of people.↗ · Tok Pisin began as a pidgin and is now an official language of Papua New Guinea.↗ · On holiday, Dad got by with pidgin Spanish.↗ · Traders made a pidgin so they could buy and sell.↗ · When a pidgin becomes a first language, it is called a creole.↗

pie — Everyday, meaning 1: A pie is food made of pastry filled with fruit, meat or vegetables and baked in an oven.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A pie chart is a round graph cut into slices that show parts of a whole.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: «Pi» (π) is a different word that sounds the same: the number about 3.14 used for circles.↗ Example: Grandma baked an apple pie.↗ · Can I have a slice of pumpkin pie?↗ · In Australia people often eat a meat pie at the football.↗ · The pie chart shows that half the class likes dogs.↗ · Cut the pie into eight equal pieces.↗ · That test was as easy as pie!↗ · Let the pie cool before you eat it, or you'll burn your mouth.↗ · ‘That is an admirable pie, little kitchen-maid.↗

piebald — Everyday, meaning 1: Of a horse or other animal: having large patches of two colours, usually black and white.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (noun) A piebald horse or pony.↗ Example: The children rode a piebald pony.↗ · A piebald horse stood in the field.↗ · Our cat is piebald, black and white.↗ · The travellers' piebald horses grazed by the road.↗ · She drew a piebald pony with big patches.↗ · The circus had a piebald horse with a white face.↗ · Then he changed the old mare into a brisk, piebald palfrey.↗

piece — Everyday, meaning 1: A piece is a part of something that has been cut, broken or divided, like a piece of cake.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A piece is one single item of something, like a piece of paper or a piece of advice.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: A piece is one of the parts of a game or a puzzle, like a chess piece.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: A piece is a work of music, art or writing.↗ Example: She had 30 pieces of candy.↗ · The pizza is cut into 8 pieces.↗ · Each friend got 3 pieces of gum.↗ · How many pieces are left?↗ · The puzzle has 500 pieces.↗ · Hand me a piece of paper.↗ · The vase fell and broke into pieces.↗ · That test was a piece of cake!↗ · She played a piano piece at the concert.↗ · The detective pieced the clues together.↗ · "Chop him into pieces," said another.↗ · And he shall flay the burnt-offering, and cut it into its pieces.↗ (Torah LEV.1.6, JPS 1917)↗ · Thou shalt break it in pieces, and pour oil thereon; it is a meal-offering.↗ (Torah LEV.2.6, JPS 1917)↗ · They made shoulder-pieces for it, joined together; at the two ends was it joined together.↗ (Torah EXO.39.4, JPS 1917)↗ · And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.↗ (Prophets 1SA.15.33, JPS 1917)↗ · Art thou not it that hewed Rahab in pieces, that pierced the dragon?↗ (Prophets ISA.51.9, JPS 1917)↗ · He breaketh in pieces mighty men without inquisition, and setteth others in their stead.↗ (Writings JOB.34.24, JPS 1917)↗

pied — Everyday, meaning 1: Pied means having patches of two or more colours, especially black and white, like a magpie or a pied wagtail.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: The Pied Piper of Hamelin is a character in an old German legend, a piper in colourful clothes who leads away the rats and then the children.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (French) «Pied» means «foot» in French; «à pied» means «on foot».↗ It is said roughly «pee-AY» and is not an English word in this sense.↗ Example: A pied wagtail hopped across the playground.↗ · The Pied Piper played his pipe and the rats followed him.↗ · The town did not pay the Pied Piper, so he led the children away.↗ · The pied horse had big black and white patches.↗ · In French, «Je vais à l'école à pied» means «I go to school on foot».↗ · A pied currawong was calling from the gum tree.↗ · Magpies have pied feathers.↗ · "I'm called the Pied Piper," he began.↗

pier — Everyday, meaning 1: A pier is a long platform built out from the shore into the sea or a lake, on posts, for walking along or for boats to stop at.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A pier is a strong pillar that holds up a bridge.↗ Example: We walked to the end of the pier.↗ · The boat stopped at the pier.↗ · The old pier has an arcade and a café.↗ · Don't jump off the pier; the water is dangerous.↗ · Fishermen were fishing from the pier.↗ · Huge stone piers hold up the bridge.↗ · As he jumped on to the pier his eye caught the notice about the princess, and he thought, ‘He has undertaken to find her, and has certainly lost his head.↗

pierce — Everyday, meaning 1: To make a hole in or through something with a sharp point.↗ e.g. "The needle pierced the cloth."↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To have a hole made in a body part to wear jewellery.↗ e.g. "She had her ears pierced."↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (of light, sound or cold) To suddenly go through something.↗ e.g. "A scream pierced the silence."↗ Everyday, meaning 4: (piercing, adjective) Very loud and high, very sharp, or very cold; piercing eyes seem to look right through you.↗ Example: The arrow pierced the target.↗ · She got her ears pierced for her birthday.↗ · A whistle pierced the air.↗ · Sunlight pierced the clouds.↗ · A thorn pierced his finger.↗ · The wind was piercing on the hill.↗ · Her piercing blue eyes stared at me.↗ · Immediately afterward they heard a sharp, piercing cry.↗ · Art thou not it that hewed Rahab in pieces, that pierced the dragon?↗ (Prophets ISA.51.9, JPS 1917)↗ · By His breath the heavens are serene; His hand hath pierced the slant serpent.↗ (Writings JOB.26.13, JPS 1917)↗ · Shall any take him by his eyes, or pierce through his nose with a snare?↗ (Writings JOB.40.24, JPS 1917)↗

piercing — In Jewish tradition, meaning 1: A sharp stab or wound, as by a pointed thing.↗ Example: There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword; but the tongue of the wise is health.↗ (Writings PRO.12.18, JPS 1917)↗

piety — Everyday, meaning 1: Piety is deep respect for God and religion, shown by a good and faithful life.↗ Example: The priest was known for his piety.↗ · The king heard of the monk's great piety.↗ · She showed piety by praying every morning.↗

pig — Everyday, meaning 1: A pig is a farm animal with a pink or dark body, a flat nose called a snout, short legs and a curly tail; it says «oink».↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Calling a person a pig (informal, rude) means they eat too much, are messy, or are greedy.↗ Example: The pig rolled in the mud to keep cool.↗ · A baby pig is called a piglet.↗ · Pigs are clever animals.↗ · The farmer feeds the pigs every morning.↗ · I saved my coins in a piggy bank.↗ · The three little pigs built three houses.↗ · Pigs have a strong sense of smell.↗ · «I will tidy my room when pigs fly!»↗

pigeon — Everyday, meaning 1: A grey (or brown and white) bird with a small head and a round body, very common in towns and cities.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (homing/carrier pigeon) A pigeon trained to fly home over long distances, once used to carry messages.↗ Example: Pigeons were pecking at crumbs in the square.↗ · A carrier pigeon carried the message across the sea.↗ · Homing pigeons can fly home from hundreds of kilometres away.↗ · The pigeon cooed on the windowsill.↗ · Please don't feed the pigeons here.↗ · Put your letters in the teacher's pigeonhole.↗ · And close upon them followed three pigeons.↗ · And he shall offer one of the turtle-doves, or of the young pigeons, such as his means suffice for; (Torah LEV.14.30, JPS 1917)↗ · And if his offering to the LORD be a burnt-offering of fowls, then he shall bring his offering of turtle-doves, or of young pigeons.↗ (Torah LEV.1.14, JPS 1917)↗ · and two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, such as his means suffice for; and the one shall be a sin-offering, and the other a burnt-offering.↗ (Torah LEV.14.22, JPS 1917)↗

pigeonhole — Everyday, meaning 1: noun.↗ e.g. One of a set of small open boxes in a wall or desk where letters and papers are put for each person.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: verb: To decide too quickly that someone or something belongs to one simple type, unfairly.↗ e.g. "Don't pigeonhole people."↗ Everyday, meaning 3: verb.↗ e.g. To put something aside and ignore it (old use).↗ Example: Leave the note in Mr Jones's pigeonhole.↗ · Each teacher has a pigeonhole in the staff room.↗ · Don't pigeonhole him as just a footballer; he loves poetry too.↗ · She hated being pigeonholed as the shy one.↗ · The letters were sorted into pigeonholes.↗ · Pigeons once lived in holes like these in dovecotes.↗

piggy — Everyday, meaning 1: A piggy is a little pig (a child's word).↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A piggy bank is a box, often shaped like a pig, for saving coins.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: Piggy (adjective) means like a pig: piggy eyes.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: A piggyback is a ride on someone's back.↗ Example: She has 20 dollars in her piggy bank.↗ · He puts 2 dollars in his piggy bank each week.↗ · She took 5 dollars out of the piggy bank.↗ · How much is in the piggy bank now?↗ · Dad gave me a piggyback ride to bed.↗ · «This little piggy went to market» is a game with toes.↗ · My piggy bank is full of coins.↗ · The baby giggled at the little piggy in the picture book.↗ · As she was coming home, she came to a stile: but the piggy wouldn't go over the stile.↗

piglet — Everyday, meaning 1: A piglet is a baby pig.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Piglet is the small, shy pink pig in the Winnie-the-Pooh stories (a name of a character).↗ Example: The sow had twelve piglets.↗ · The piglets squealed as they ran to their mother.↗ · A litter of piglets slept in the straw.↗ · The smallest piglet is called the runt.↗ · Piglet held Pooh's paw on the windy day.↗ · Piglets drink their mother's milk for a few weeks.↗ · We fed the piglets at the city farm.↗

pigment — Everyday, meaning 1: A pigment is a substance that gives colour to something, like the green in leaves or the colour of skin, hair and eyes.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A pigment is also a coloured powder that is mixed with oil or water to make paint.↗ Example: Chlorophyll is the green pigment in leaves.↗ · Melanin is a pigment in our skin.↗ · Cave painters made pigments from red earth and charcoal.↗ · We separated the pigments in a felt-tip pen using wet paper.↗ · The artist mixed the blue pigment with oil.↗ · In autumn the green pigment fades and the yellow shows through.↗ · Some animals have no pigment and are pure white.↗

pigmentation — Everyday, meaning 1: The natural colour of skin, hair, eyes, leaves or other living things, caused by pigments (coloured substances).↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Coloured spots or patches on skin.↗ Example: Skin pigmentation comes from melanin.↗ · The frog's bright pigmentation warns that it is poisonous.↗ · Albino animals lack pigmentation.↗ · Sun can cause dark pigmentation spots on skin.↗ · Autumn leaves change pigmentation as chlorophyll breaks down.↗ · Human skin pigmentation varies, and all of it is normal.↗