pitchpipe

P3I1T1C3H4P3I1P3E1

noun

A small pipe used to set the pitch for an instrument, song etc.

First used 17th c.Scrabble 20
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Meanings

nounpitchpipe (plural pitchpipes)

plural pitchpipes

  1. entertainmentA small pipe used to set the pitch for an instrument, song etc.First known use 17th c.

    The lady with the spiritual bent blew a pitchpipe and the choir members began singing lustily, “Oh, Jesus, walk by my side, / Then I always, always be satisfied.”

    1963 (date written), John Kennedy Toole, A Confederacy of Dunces, London: Penguin Books, published 1980 (1981 printing), →ISBN

Origin

From pitch + pipe.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

pitchpipe. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pitchpipe

MLA

“pitchpipe.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pitchpipe. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pitchpipe,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pitchpipe.

Source: pitchpipe on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.