pith C2+ Topic:The Human Body US /pɪθ/ UK /pɪθ/ See IPA manual Minimal pairs Sounds like pit /θ/ vs /t/ Meanings 1 noun the essential or central part of something; spongy plant tissue He cut straight to the pith of the argument. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · the essential or central... essencecorecruxheartgistsubstancekernelmarrow ↔ Opposites peripheryexterior Word family Derived forms pithypithinesspithless Etymology AI details From Old English pitha ('pith of plants, essential part'), from Proto-West Germanic *piþō (compare Dutch pit, Middle Low German peddik), of uncertain further origin. pitha Old English *piþō Proto-Germanic View etymology graph -> Topics The Human Body External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # pith **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /pɪθ/ **IPA (UK):** /pɪθ/ ## Meanings 1. the essential or central part of something; spongy plant tissue ## Examples - He cut straight to the pith of the argument. ## Synonyms - essence - core - crux - heart - gist - substance - kernel - marrow ## Antonyms - periphery - exterior ## Derived Forms - pithy - pithiness - pithless ## Roots and Affixes - Root: pitha - Root: *piþō ## Etymology From Old English pitha ('pith of plants, essential part'), from Proto-West Germanic *piþō (compare Dutch pit, Middle Low German peddik), of uncertain further origin. ## AI Etymology Pith comes from Old English pitha ('pith of plants, essential part'), from Proto-West Germanic *piþō (compare Dutch pit, Middle Low German peddik), of uncertain further origin. The etymological trail includes Old English pitha and Proto-Germanic *piþō. As a noun, pith means the essential or central part of something; spongy plant tissue. The same family is visible in derived forms such as pithy, pithiness, and pithless. The uncertainty belongs to the older derivation, so the explanation should preserve alternatives rather than choosing one unsupported origin. ## Topics - The Human Body markdown