pittance
pit·tance/ˈpɪtəns/noun
pittance is spelled P-I-T-T-A-N-C-E: 8 letters and 2 syllables (pit·tance). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 46,473rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, pittance means “A small allowance of food and drink; a scanty meal” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of pittance is pittances.
How many letters and syllables are in pittance?
| Letters | 8: P-I-T-T-A-N-C-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: pit·tance |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 46,473rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is pittance?
Pittance appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 46,473rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce pittance?
- /ˈpɪtəns/
- [ˈpʰɪʔn̩s]
Pittance has 2 syllables, split pit·tance in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-pittance.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of pittance
- pittances plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pittance mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A small allowance of food and drink; a scanty meal.
- 2
A meagre allowance of money or wages.
- 3
A small amount.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pittance in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pitance |
| German | Hungermahlzeit , Hungerlohn , Almosen |
| Portuguese | mixaria |
| Spanish | miseria, chavería |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does pittance come from?
From Middle English pitaunce, from Old French pitance, pitence, from Medieval Latin *pietāntia, from Latin pietās (“piety”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).