piece

/piːs/

//piːs// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"piece" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“piece” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #975. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#975
frequency rank, English
46,516
“P” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A part of a larger whole, usually in such a form that it is able to be separated from other parts.

Corpus desk

Index EN-piece · piece · English

piece · rank #975 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-CORE #975
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 46,516
  • PHOTO-FINISH percent

Nearest frequency peer: percent (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “piece”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “piece” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

piece vs pipe
60% similar
piece vs pile
60% similar
piece vs pine
60% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for piece
PropertyValue
Headwordpiece
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/piːs/
Letters5
Frequency rank#975
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “piece” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). piece lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around piece (IPA /piːs/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #975 among 46,516 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 21 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for piece, with forms such as "ipece", "peice", and "picee". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "pipe", "pile", "pine", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English pece, peece, peice, from Old French piece, from Late Latin petia, pettia, possibly from Gaulish *pettyā, from Proto-Celtic *kʷezdis (“piece, portion, quota”). Compare Welsh peth, Breton pez (“thing”), Irish cuid. Compare French pièce, Po… The correct English form is piece, spelled P-I-E-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A part of a larger whole, usually in such a form that it is able to be separated from other parts.
  2. 2
    A single item belonging to a class of similar items.
  3. 3
    One of the figures used in playing chess, specifically a higher-value figure as distinguished from a pawn; (by extension) those with which draughts, backgammon, and other similar board games are played.
  4. 4
    A coin, especially one valued at less than the principal unit of currency.
  5. 5
    An artistic creation, such as a painting, sculpture, musical composition, literary work, etc.
  6. 6
    An article published in the press.
  7. 7
    An artillery gun.
  8. 8
    A gun.
  9. 9
    A toupee or wig, especially when worn by a man.
  10. 10
    A slice or other quantity of bread, eaten on its own; a sandwich or light snack.
  11. 11
    A sexual encounter; from piece of ass or piece of tail.
  12. 12
    A shoddy or worthless object (usually applied to consumer products like vehicles or appliances).
  13. 13
    A cannabis pipe.
  14. 14
    Used to describe a pitch that has been hit but not well, usually either being caught by the opposing team or going foul. Usually used in the past tense with get.
  15. 15
    An individual; a person.
  16. 16
    A castle; a fortified building.
  17. 17
    A pacifier; a dummy.
  18. 18
    A distance.
  19. 19
    A structured practice row, often used for performance evaluation.
  20. 20
    An amount of work to be done at one time; a unit of piece work.
  21. 21
    An ounce of a recreational drug.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how piece appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Near-synonyms: aspect, portion
  2. I’d like another piece of pie.

Etymology

From Middle English pece, peece, peice, from Old French piece, from Late Latin petia, pettia, possibly from Gaulish *pettyā, from Proto-Celtic *kʷezdis (“piece, portion, quota”). Compare Welsh peth, Breton pez (“thing”), Irish cuid. Compare French pièce, Portuguese peça, Spanish pieza, Italian pezza, Italian pezzo.

Synonyms

bitchipchunkclipcrumbcrumblingcuttingflakefleakfragmenthunklumpmammockortpiecepiecemealportionscrapscrapletslicesneadsnippetsteck

This word in other languages

pieza(Español)morceau(Français)Stück(Deutsch)peça(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ipece
  • peice
  • picee
  • piecce
  • pieec
  • ppiece

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of piece - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ipece2peice2picee2piecce1pieec2ppiece1
Edit distance from "piece"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "piece"?
"piece" is spelled P-I-E-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /piːs/.
What does "piece" mean?
As a noun, "piece" means: A part of a larger whole, usually in such a form that it is able to be separated from other parts.
What words are commonly confused with "piece"?
"piece" is commonly confused with "pipe", "pile", "pine". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "piece"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "piece" is /piːs/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "piece"?
From Middle English pece, peece, peice, from Old French piece, from Late Latin petia, pettia, possibly from Gaulish *pettyā, from Proto-Celtic *kʷezdis (“piece, portion, quota”). Compare Welsh peth, Breton pez (“thing”), Irish cuid. Compare French... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "piece", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

India#970visit#980wanna#982we've#983

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

dark6 variantscases6 variantscard6 variantsboys6 variants
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list