Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Piece
Piece
,Noun.
[OE.
pece
, F. pièce
, LL. pecia
, petia
, petium
, probably of Celtic origin; cf. W. peth
a thing, a part, portion, a little, Armor. pez
, Gael. & Ir. cuid
part, share. Cf. Petty
.] 1.
A fragment or part of anything separated from the whole, in any manner, as by cutting, splitting, breaking, or tearing; a part; a portion;
as, a
piece
of sugar; to break in pieces
.Bring it out
piece
by piece
. Ezek. xxiv. 6.
2.
A definite portion or quantity, as of goods or work;
as, a
piece
of broadcloth; a piece
of wall paper.3.
Any one thing conceived of as apart from other things of the same kind; an individual article; a distinct single effort of a series; a definite performance
; especially: (a)
A literary or artistic composition;
as, a
. piece
of poetry, music, or statuary(b)
A musket, gun, or cannon;
as, a battery of six
. pieces
; a following piece
(c)
A coin;
as, a sixpenny
; – formerly applied specifically to an English gold coin worth 22 shillings. piece
(d)
A fact; an item;
as, a
. piece
of news; a piece
of knowledge4.
An individual; – applied to a person as being of a certain nature or quality; often, but not always, used slightingly or in contempt.
“If I had not been a piece of a logician before I came to him.” Sir P. Sidney.
Thy mother was a
piece
of virtue. Shakespeare
His own spirit is as unsettled a
piece
as there is in all the world. Coleridge.
5.
(Chess)
One of the superior men, distinguished from a pawn.
6.
A castle; a fortified building.
[Obs.]
Spenser.
Of a piece
, of the same sort, as if taken from the same whole; like; – sometimes followed by with.
Dryden.
– Piece of eight
, the Spanish piaster, formerly divided into eight reals.
– To give a piece of one’s mind to
, to speak plainly, bluntly, or severely to (another).
Thackeray.
– Piece broker
, one who buys shreds and remnants of cloth to sell again.
– Piece goods
, goods usually sold by pieces or fixed portions, as shirtings, calicoes, sheetings, and the like.
Piece
,Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Pieced
; p. pr. & vb. n.
Piecing
.] 1.
To make, enlarge, or repair, by the addition of a piece or pieces; to patch;
as, to
; – often with out. piece
a garmentShak.
2.
To unite; to join; to combine.
Fuller.
His adversaries . . .
pieced
themselves together in a joint opposition against him. Fuller.
Piece
,Verb.
I.
To unite by a coalescence of parts; to fit together; to join.
“It pieced better.” Bacon.
Webster 1828 Edition
Piece
PIECE
,Noun.
1.
A fragment or part of any thing separated from the whole, in any manner, by cutting, splitting, breaking or tearing; as, to cut in pieces, break in pieces, tear in pieces, pull in pieces, &c.; a piece of a rock; a piece of paper.2.
A part of any thing, though not separated, or separated only in idea; not the whole; a portion; as a piece of excellent knowledge.3.
A distinct part or quantity; a part considered by itself, or separated from the rest only by a boundary or divisional line; as a piece of land in the meadow or on the mountain.4.
A separate part; a thing or portion distinct from others of a like kind; as a piece of timber; a piece of cloth; a piece of paper hangings.5.
A composition, essay or writing of no great length; as a piece of poetry or prose; a piece of music.6.
A separate performance; a distinct portion of labor; as a piece of work.7.
A picture or painting. If unnatural, the finest colors are but daubing,and the piece is a beautiful monster at the best.
8.
A coin; as a piece of eight.9.
A gun or single part of ordnance. We apply the word to a cannon, a mortar, or a musket. Large guns are called battering pieces; smaller guns are called field pieces. 10. In heraldry, an ordinary or charge. The fess, the bend, the pale, the bar, the cross, the saltier, the chevron are called honorable pieces.
11. In ridicule or contempt. A piece of a lawyer is a smatterer.
12. A castle; a building. [Not in use.]
A-piece, to each; as, he paid the men a dollar a-piece.
Of a piece, like; of the same sort, as if taken from the same whole. They seemed all of a piece. Sometimes followed by with.
The poet must be of a piece with the spectators to gain reputation.
PIECE
,Verb.
T.
To piece out, to extend or enlarge by addition of a piece or pieces.
PIECE
,Verb.
I.