Pizza Definition & Meaning

American

British

Etymology

Examples

pizza American [peet-suh] / ˈpit sə /

noun

1. a flat, open-faced baked pie of Italian origin, consisting of a thin layer of bread dough topped with spiced tomato sauce and cheese, often garnished with anchovies, sausage slices, mushrooms, etc.

pizza British / ˈpiːtsə /

noun

1. a dish of Italian origin consisting of a baked disc of dough covered with cheese and tomatoes, usually with the addition of mushrooms, anchovies, sausage, or ham

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of pizza

1930–35; < Italian pizza (variant pitta ), perhaps ultimately < Greek; Cf. pḗtea bran, pētítēs bran bread

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Leftover pizza gets cut up, crisped on the stove and mixed into scrambled eggs—a remnant from Duggal’s college days that she has christened “pizza eggs.”

From The Wall Street Journal

There’s like three different styles, but when it comes to pizza and hoagies, I’m very simple.

From Los Angeles Times

But this month, one of the nation’s largest pizza chains plans to open up in that exact downtown area — much to the concern, and surprise, of many locals.

From Los Angeles Times

Science is not well-equipped to prove a negative — as some of Kennedy’s critics note, there’s no proof that drinking Coca-Cola or eating pizza doesn’t cause autism, either.

From Los Angeles Times

I overheard, “Let’s dress up, like, for an Oscars party, drink champagne and then order in pizza and wings.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.