piece

1 of 2

noun

ˈpēs 

1

: a part of a whole: such as

a

: fragment

pieces of broken glass

b

: any of the individual members comprising a unit

—often used in combination

a five-piece band

a three-piece suit

c

: portion, allocation

a piece of the jackpot

2

: an object or individual regarded as a unit of a kind or class

a piece of fruit

3

: a usually unspecified distance

down the road a piece

4

: a standard quantity (as of length, weight, or size) in which something is made or sold

5

: a literary, journalistic, artistic, dramatic, or musical composition

6

: firearm

7

: coin

also : token

8

: a movable object used in playing a board game

specifically : a chessman other than a pawn

9

: opinion, view

spoke his piece

10

a

vulgar : an act of copulation

b

vulgar : the female partner in sexual intercourse

11

: instance, example

silly piece of nonsense

a nice piece of acting

piece

2 of 2

verb

pieced; piecing

transitive verb

1

: to repair, renew, or complete by adding pieces : patch

2

: to join into a whole

—often used with together

his new book … has been pieced together from talks

—Merle Miller

piecer noun

Phrases

of a piece

: alike, consistent

piece of one's mind

: a severe scolding : tongue-lashing

piece of the action

: a share in activity or profit

to pieces

1

: without reserve or restraint : completely

2

: into fragments

also : into component parts

3

: out of control

went to pieces from shock

Synonyms

Noun

• bit
• fraction
• fragment
• scrap

Verb

• assemble
• build
• confect
• construct
• erect
• fabricate
• make
• make up
• put up
• raise
• rear
• set up

Choose the Right Synonym for piece

part, portion, piece, member, division, section, segment, fragment mean something less than the whole.

part is a general term appropriate when indefiniteness is required.

they ran only part of the way

portion implies an assigned or allotted part.

cut the pie into six portions

piece applies to a separate or detached part of a whole.

a puzzle with 500 pieces

member suggests one of the functional units composing a body.

a structural member

division applies to a large or diversified part.

the manufacturing division of the company

section applies to a relatively small or uniform part.

the entertainment section of the newspaper

segment applies to a part separated or marked out by or as if by natural lines of cleavage.

the retired segment of the population

fragment applies to a part produced by or as if by breaking off.

only a fragment of the play still exists

Examples of piece in a Sentence

Noun

Divide the pie into six equal pieces.

The cheese was cut into small pieces and arranged on a silver platter.

You have a piece of lettuce stuck between your teeth.

Her broken bicycle lay in pieces by the side of the road.

I watched her rip the letter to pieces and throw it away.

There are 12 pieces in this stainless steel knife set.

a jigsaw puzzle with 500 pieces

We're missing one piece of the puzzle.

I took apart the engine piece by piece and put it back together again.

Verb

you might want to piece together a quilt from those odd patches of cloth

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Mazzoli created a lush score that was alternately sweeping or intimate, sensuous or mystical, yet with a distinctive sound that was her own weaving a thread through the piece. —Janelle Gelfand, Cincinnati.com, 19 July 2017

This is why the war stories of Tom Clancy are such convincing and moving pieces of fiction. —Janine Barchas, Washington Post, 18 July 2017

Verb

Now, emerging research seems to be piecing more of the puzzle together. —William A. Haseltine, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024

Yung explores the before and after of that shocking event through the eyes of Ming’s father, Yuen (Sean Lau), who tries to piece his life back together while also trying to figure out what may have caused his son to carry out such a horrendous act. —Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *pettia, of Gaulish origin; akin to Welsh peth thing

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing piece

• a nasty piece of work
• a piece of cake
• a piece of junk
• a piece of someone
• a piece/slice/share of the pie
• companion piece
• conversation piece
• fowling piece
• give (someone) a piece of one's mind
• how long is a piece of string
• in one piece
• museum piece
• one-piece
• opinion piece
• period piece
• piece by piece
• piece-dye
• piece goods
• piece of cake
• piece of eight
• piece of shit
• piece of the puzzle
• piece of work
• piece one's life back together
• piece together
• puff piece
• say one's piece
• set piece
• think piece
• three-piece
• three-piece suit
• three-piece suite
• two-piece
• two-piece suit

Kids Definition

piece

1 of 2 noun

ˈpēs 

1

: a part cut, torn, or broken from a thing : fragment

a piece of string

2

: one of a class, group, or set of things

a piece of mail

a three-piece suit

a chess piece

3

: a usually unspecified distance

down the road a piece

4

: a portion marked off

a piece of land

5

: a single item or example

a piece of news

6

: a standard quantity or size in which an article is made or sold

buy lumber by the piece

7

: something made, composed, or written

a piece written for the piano

8

: coin entry 1 sense 1

a 50-cent piece

9

: firearm

10

: example sense 1

a nice piece of acting

piece

2 of 2 verb

pieced; piecing

1

: to repair, form, or complete by adding pieces

helped to piece a quilt

pieced a jigsaw puzzle

2

: to join into a whole

pieced their stories together

piecer noun