PIECE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does piece mean? 

• PIECE (noun)
  The noun PIECE has 13 senses:

1. a separate part of a whole

2. an item that is an instance of some type

3. a portion of a natural object

4. a musical work that has been created

5. an instance of some kind

6. an artistic or literary composition

7. a portable gun

8. a serving that has been cut from a larger portion

9. a distance

10. a work of art of some artistic value

11. a period of indeterminate length (usually short) marked by some action or condition

12. a share of something

13. game equipment consisting of an object used in playing certain board games

  Familiarity information: PIECE used as a noun is familiar.

• PIECE (verb)
  The verb PIECE has 5 senses:

1. to join or unite the pieces of

2. create by putting components or members together

3. join during spinning

4. eat intermittently; take small bites of

5. repair by adding pieces

  Familiarity information: PIECE used as a verb is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PIECE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A separate part of a whole

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Context example:

an important piece of the evidence

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

part; portion (something less than the whole of a human artifact)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

beam (long thick piece of wood or metal or concrete, etc., used in construction)

piece of cloth; piece of material (a separate part consisting of fabric)

piece of leather (a separate part consisting of leather)

scrap (a small piece of something that is left over after the rest has been used)

fragment; shard; sherd (a broken piece of a brittle artifact)

snip; snippet; snipping (a small piece of anything (especially a piece that has been snipped off))

spindle (a piece of wood that has been turned on a lathe; used as a baluster, chair leg, etc.)

Derivation:

piece (repair by adding pieces)

piece (to join or unite the pieces of)

piece (create by putting components or members together)

Sense 2

Meaning:

An item that is an instance of some type

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

part; piece

Context example:

my dog swallowed a Lego part

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

item (a whole individual unit; especially when included in a list or collection)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A portion of a natural object

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Synonyms:

part; piece

Context example:

he needed a piece of granite

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

thing (a separate and self-contained entity)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

world (a part of the earth that can be considered separately)

strip (a relatively long narrow piece of something)

slice (a thin flat piece cut off of some object)

base (the bottom or lowest part)

segment (one of the parts into which something naturally divides)

nub; stub (a small piece)

hunk; lump (a large piece of something without definite shape)

cutting (a piece cut off from the main part of something)

body part (any part of an organism such as an organ or extremity)

corpus (the main part of an organ or other bodily structure)

acicula (a needlelike part or structure of a plant or animal or crystal; as a spine or bristle or crystal)

corner (a projecting part where two sides or edges meet)

fragment (a piece broken off or cut off of something else)

craton (the part of a continent that is stable and forms the central mass of the continent; typically Precambrian)

Instance hyponyms:

North Pacific (that part of the Pacific Ocean to the north of the equator)

South Atlantic (that part of the Atlantic Ocean to the south of the equator)

South Pacific (that part of the Pacific Ocean to the south of the equator)

North Atlantic (that part of the Atlantic Ocean to the north of the equator)

Holonyms ("piece" is a part of...):

building block; unit (a single undivided natural thing occurring in the composition of something else)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A musical work that has been created

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

composition; musical composition; opus; piece; piece of music

Context example:

the composition is written in four movements

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

music (an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner)

Meronyms (parts of "piece"):

coda; finale (the closing section of a musical composition)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

medley; pastiche; potpourri (a musical composition consisting of a series of songs or other musical pieces from various sources)

etude (a short composition for a solo instrument; intended as an exercise or to demonstrate technical virtuosity)

toccata (a baroque musical composition (usually for a keyboard instrument) with full chords and rapid elaborate runs in a rhythmically free style)

fantasia (a musical composition of a free form usually incorporating several familiar themes)

musical passage; passage (a short section of a musical composition)

movement (a major self-contained part of a symphony or sonata)

largo ((music) a composition or passage that is to be performed in a slow and dignified manner)

larghetto ((music) a composition or passage played in a slow tempo slightly faster than largo but slower than adagio)

suite (a musical composition of several movements only loosely connected)

symphonic poem; tone poem (an orchestral composition based on literature or folk tales)

nocturne; notturno (a pensive lyrical piece of music (especially for the piano))

adagio ((music) a composition played in adagio tempo (slowly and gracefully))

song; vocal (a short musical composition with words)

study (a composition intended to develop one aspect of the performer's technique)

capriccio (an instrumental composition that doesn't adhere to rules for any specific musical form and is played with improvisation)

motet (an unaccompanied choral composition with sacred lyrics; intended to be sung as part of a church service; originated in the 13th century)

program music; programme music (musical compositions intended to evoke images or remind the listener of events)

incidental music (music composed to accompany the action of a drama or to fill intervals between scenes)

idyl; idyll; pastoral; pastorale (a musical composition that evokes rural life)

divertimento; serenade (a musical composition in several movements; has no fixed form)

canon (a contrapuntal piece of music in which a melody in one part is imitated exactly in other parts)

morceau (a short literary or musical composition)

sheet music (a musical composition in printed or written form)

arrangement; musical arrangement (a piece of music that has been adapted for performance by a particular set of voices or instruments)

realisation; realization (a musical composition that has been completed or enriched by someone other than the composer)

intermezzo (a short piece of instrumental music composed for performance between acts of a drama or opera)

allegro (a musical composition or musical passage to be performed quickly in a brisk lively manner)

allegretto (a musical composition or musical passage to be performed at a somewhat quicker tempo than andante but not as fast as allegro)

andante (a musical composition or musical passage to be performed moderately slow)

introit (a composition of vocal music that is appropriate for opening church services)

duet; duette; duo (a musical composition for two performers)

trio (a musical composition for three performers)

quartet; quartette (a musical composition for four performers)

quintet; quintette (a musical composition for five performers)

sestet; sextet; sextette (a musical composition written for six performers)

septet; septette (a musical composition written for seven performers)

octet; octette (a musical composition written for eight performers)

bagatelle (a light piece of music for piano)

solo (a musical composition for one voice or instrument (with or without accompaniment))

Sense 5

Meaning:

An instance of some kind

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

bit; piece

Context example:

he had a bit of good luck

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

case; example; instance (an occurrence of something)

Sense 6

Meaning:

An artistic or literary composition

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Context example:

the children acted out a comic piece to amuse the guests

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

creation (an artifact that has been brought into existence by someone)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

morceau (a short literary or musical composition)

hiatus (a missing piece (as a gap in a manuscript))

fragment (an incomplete piece)

article (nonfictional prose forming an independent part of a publication)

afterpiece (a brief dramatic piece (usually comic) presented after a play)

Sense 7

Meaning:

A portable gun

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

firearm; piece; small-arm

Context example:

he wore his firearm in a shoulder holster

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

gun (a weapon that discharges a missile at high velocity (especially from a metal tube or barrel))

Meronyms (parts of "piece"):

firing pin (striker that ignites the charge by striking the primer)

lock (a mechanism that detonates the charge of a gun)

sights (an optical instrument for aiding the eye in aiming, as on a firearm or surveying instrument)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

muzzle loader (an obsolete firearm that was loaded through the muzzle)

handgun; pistol; shooting iron; side arm (a firearm that is held and fired with one hand)

repeater; repeating firearm (a firearm that can fire several rounds without reloading)

rifle (a shoulder firearm with a long barrel and a rifled bore)

riot gun (a firearm designed to disperse rioters rather than to inflict serious injury or death)

scattergun; shotgun (firearm that is a double-barreled smoothbore shoulder weapon for firing shot at short ranges)

smoothbore (a firearm that has no rifling)

.22; twenty-two (a .22 caliber firearm (pistol or rifle))

autoloader; self-loader (a firearm that reloads itself)

Sense 8

Meaning:

A serving that has been cut from a larger portion

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Synonyms:

piece; slice

Context example:

a slice of bread

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

helping; portion; serving (an individual quantity of food or drink taken as part of a meal)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

cutlet; escallop; scallop; scollop (thin slice of meat (especially veal) usually fried or broiled)

filet; fillet; fish filet; fish fillet (a longitudinal slice or boned side of a fish)

Derivation:

piece (eat intermittently; take small bites of)

Sense 9

Meaning:

A distance

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Context example:

it is down the road a piece

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

distance (the property created by the space between two objects or points)

Sense 10

Meaning:

A work of art of some artistic value

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

art object; objet d'art; piece

Context example:

it is not known who created this piece

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

work of art (art that is a product of one of the fine arts (especially a painting or sculpture of artistic merit))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

virtu (objet d'art collectively (especially fine antiques))

Sense 11

Meaning:

A period of indeterminate length (usually short) marked by some action or condition

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

patch; piece; spell; while

Context example:

a patch of bad weather

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

time (an indefinite period (usually marked by specific attributes or activities))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

hot spell (a spell of hot weather)

snap; cold snap; cold spell (a spell of cold weather)

Sense 12

Meaning:

A share of something

Classified under:

Nouns denoting possession and transfer of possession

Synonyms:

piece; slice

Context example:

a slice of the company's revenue

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

part; percentage; portion; share (assets belonging to or due to or contributed by an individual person or group)

Sense 13

Meaning:

Game equipment consisting of an object used in playing certain board games

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

man; piece

Context example:

he sacrificed a piece to get a strategic advantage

Hypernyms ("piece" is a kind of...):

game equipment (equipment or apparatus used in playing a game)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "piece"):

tile (game equipment consisting of a flat thin piece marked with characters and used in board games like Mah-Jong, Scrabble, etc.)

white ((board games) the lighter pieces)

chess piece; chessman (any of 16 white and 16 black pieces used in playing the game of chess)

checker; chequer (one of the flat round pieces used in playing the game of checkers)

black ((board games) the darker pieces)

• PIECE (verb)

Conjugation:

Sense 1

Meaning:

To join or unite the pieces of

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Synonyms:

patch; piece

Context example:

patch the skirt

Hypernyms (to "piece" is one way to...):

conjoin; join (make contact or come together)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "piece"):

vamp; vamp up (piece (something old) with a new part)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s something with something

Sentence example:

They piece the cape

Derivation:

piece (a separate part of a whole)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Create by putting components or members together

Classified under:

Verbs of sewing, baking, painting, performing

Synonyms:

assemble; piece; put together; set up; tack; tack together

Context example:

They set up a committee

Hypernyms (to "piece" is one way to...):

join (cause to become joined or linked)

create; make (make or cause to be or to become)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "piece"):

comfit; confect; confection (make into a confection)

confuse; jumble; mix up (assemble without order or sense)

reassemble (assemble once again, after taking something apart)

configure (set up for a particular purpose)

compound (create by mixing or combining)

rig up (erect or construct, especially as a temporary measure)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Derivation:

piece (a separate part of a whole)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Join during spinning

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

piece the broken pieces of thread, slivers, and rovings

Hypernyms (to "piece" is one way to...):

splice (join by interweaving strands)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 4

Meaning:

Eat intermittently; take small bites of

Classified under:

Verbs of eating and drinking

Synonyms:

nibble; pick; piece

Context example:

She never eats a full meal--she just nibbles

Hypernyms (to "piece" is one way to...):

eat (take in solid food)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

piece (a serving that has been cut from a larger portion)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Repair by adding pieces

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

patch; piece

Context example:

She pieced the china cup

Hypernyms (to "piece" is one way to...):

bushel; doctor; fix; furbish up; mend; repair; restore; touch on (restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

piece (a separate part of a whole)

 Context examples 

He came out with a piece of meat, which he tossed to White Fang.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

These are small pieces of DNA or RNA that can bind to specific molecules of RNA.

(Antisense oligonucleotide therapy, NCI Dictionary)

Small pieces of RNA that can bind to specific molecules of RNA and block the cell’s ability to use the RNA to make a protein or work in other ways.

(antisense RNA, NCI Dictionary)

A part of a sperm cell, also known as the middle piece, between the head and the tail consisting of the neck and connection piece.

(Body of the Spermatozoon, NCI Thesaurus)

A small piece of a tumor marker called carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA).

(CAP-1, NCI Dictionary)

You wish to eat me and tear me to pieces.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

A biopsy is a procedure that removes a small piece of living tissue from your body.

(Biopsy, NIH)

“I have seen it very cruel to some of our men. I have seen it tear a boat as big as our house, all to pieces.”

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

Oh, I see what you're at—there; and he threw down three or four gold pieces on the threshold.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

A protein made from pieces of two genes that get joined together.

(BCR-ABL fusion protein, NCI Dictionary)