- pitch
- pitch1 W3 [pıtʃ] n▬▬▬▬▬▬▬1¦(sports field)¦2¦(strong feelings/activity)¦3¦(music)¦4¦(persuading)¦5¦(baseball)¦6¦(black substance)¦7¦(ship/aircraft)¦8¦(slope)¦9¦(street/market)¦▬▬▬▬▬▬▬[Sense: 1-5, 7-9; Date: 1400-1500; Origin: PITCH2][Sense: 6; Origin: Old English pic, from Latin pix]1.) ¦(SPORTS FIELD)¦ BrEa marked out area of ground on which a sport is played= ↑fieldfootball/cricket/rugby etc pitch▪ the world-famous Wembley football pitch▪ He ran the length of the pitch and scored.on the pitch(=playing a sport)▪ Jack was on the pitch for his school in the Senior Cup Final.2.) ¦(STRONG FEELINGS/ACTIVITY)¦ [singular, U]a strong level of feeling about something or a high level of an activity or a quality▪ The controversy reached such a pitch (=become so strong) that the paper devoted a whole page to it.a pitch of excitement/excellence/perfection etc(=a high level of excitement etc)▪ He screamed at her in a pitch of fury.▪ The goal roused the crowd to fever pitch (=a very excited level) .3.) ¦(MUSIC)¦a) [singular, U]how high or low a note or other sound is▪ Ultrasonic waves are at a higher pitch than the human ear can hear.b) [U]the ability of a musician to play or sing a note at exactly the correct level▪ She's got perfect pitch .4.) ¦(PERSUADING)¦ informalthe things someone says to persuade people to buy something, do something, or accept an idea▪ an aggressive salesman with a fast-talking sales pitchmake a/sb's pitch (for sth)(=try to persuade people to do something)▪ He made his strongest pitch yet for standardized testing in schools.5.) ¦(BASEBALL)¦a throw of the ball, or a way in which it can be thrown▪ His first pitch was high and wide.6.) ¦(BLACK SUBSTANCE)¦[U]a black, sticky substance that is used on roofs, the bottoms of ships etc to stop water coming through▪ The night was as black as pitch (=very dark) .7.) ¦(SHIP/AIRCRAFT)¦[U]an up and down movement of a ship or an aircraft→↑roll▪ the pitch and roll of the ship8.) ¦(SLOPE)¦ [singular, U]the degree to which a roof slopes or the sloping part of a roof▪ the steep pitch of the roof9.) ¦(STREET/MARKET)¦ BrEa place in a public area where someone who sells things to people goes to sell things or where an entertainer goes to sell things or perform▪ We found the boy at his usual pitch at the bottom of the Acropolis.pitch 2pitch2 v▬▬▬▬▬▬▬1¦(throw)¦2¦(ball games)¦3¦(fall)¦4¦(ship/plane)¦5¦(set a level)¦6¦(aim product)¦7¦(business deals)¦8¦(voice/music)¦9 pitch a tent/pitch camp10¦(slope)¦11 pitch somebody a linePhrasal verbspitch inpitch into somebody/somethingpitch up▬▬▬▬▬▬▬[Date: 1100-1200; Origin: Origin unknown]1.) ¦(THROW)¦ [T always + adverb/preposition]to throw something with a lot of force, often aiming carefully▪ She crumpled up the page and pitched it into the fire.2.) ¦(BALL GAMES)¦a) [I and T]to aim and throw a ball in baseballpitch to▪ Stanton pitched to two batters in the ninth inning.b)if a ball pitches in ↑cricket or golf, it hits the groundc) [T]to hit the ball in a high curve in golfd) [T]3.) ¦(FALL)¦ [I,T always + adverb/preposition]to fall or be moved suddenly in a particular direction, or to make someone or something do thispitch (sb/sth) forward/backward/over etc▪ She slipped and pitched forward onto the ground.pitch sb/sth into/onto/through etc sth▪ Without a seatbelt, you can easily be pitched right through the windscreen.4.) ¦(SHIP/PLANE)¦ [I]if a ship or an aircraft pitches, it moves up and down in an uncontrolled way with the movement of the water or air5.) ¦(SET A LEVEL)¦ [T usually passive]a) to set a speech, examination, explanation etc at a particular level of difficultypitch sth at a high level/the right level etc▪ The projects were pitched at a number of different levels.▪ Some questions were pitched too high for intermediate students.b) [i]BrE to set prices at a particular levelpitch sth at sth▪ Room rates are pitched at £69 for a single.6.) ¦(AIM PRODUCT)¦ [T usually passive]to aim a product at a particular type of organization, group of people etc, or to describe it in a particular way, in order to sell itpitch sth at sb/sth▪ The new machine will be pitched at users in the hotel and air reservation business.pitch sth as sth▪ It is pitched as a cheaper alternative to other workstations.7.) ¦(BUSINESS DEALS)¦ [I and T] informalto try to persuade someone to do business with you, buy something etcpitch for business/contracts/custom etc▪ Booksellers are keen to pitch for school business.pitch to▪ For many companies, pitching to investors has become almost a full-time job.▪ sales reps pitching new gadgets8.) ¦(VOICE/MUSIC)¦ [T always + adverb/preposition]if you pitch your voice or another sound at a particular level, the sound is produced at that levelpitch sth high/low etc▪ Her voice is pitched a little too high.9.) pitch a tent/pitch campto set up a tent or a camp for a short time▪ Try and pitch your tent on level ground.10.)¦(SLOPE)¦ [I always + adverb/preposition]to slope downpitch gently/steeply etc▪ The roof pitches sharply to the rear of the house.→↑pitched11.) pitch sb a lineAmE informal to tell someone a story or give them an excuse that is difficult to believe▪ She pitched me some line about a bomb scare on the metro.pitch in phr v1.) to join others and help with an activity▪ If we all pitch in, we'll have it finished in no time.pitch in with▪ Everyone pitched in with efforts to entertain the children.2.) to join others and pay part of the money towards something▪ They all pitched in and the money was collected within a few days.3.) BrE to start to eat hungrily▪ Pitch in - there's plenty.pitch into / [pitch into sb/sth] phr v1.) to suddenly start criticizing someone or hitting them▪ She pitched into me as soon as I started to speak.2.) to start doing something, especially quickly and eagerly▪ Rick pitched into decorating the house at once.pitch up phr vto arrive somewhere= ↑turn up▪ Wait a bit longer - Bill hasn't pitched up yet.
Dictionary of contemporary English. 2013.
