[pit] 
noun, verb, pit⋅ted, pit⋅ting.| 1. | a naturally formed or excavated hole or cavity in the ground: pits caused by erosion; clay pits. |
| 2. | a covered or concealed excavation in the ground, serving as a trap. |
| 3. | Mining.
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| 4. | the abode of evil spirits and lost souls; hell: an evil inspiration from the pit. |
| 5. | the pits, Slang. an extremely unpleasant, boring, or depressing place, condition, person, etc.; the absolute worst: When you're alone, Christmas is the pits. |
| 6. | a hollow or indentation in a surface: glass flawed by pits. |
| 7. | a natural hollow or depression in the body: the pit of the back. |
| 8. | pits, Informal. the armpits: up to my pits in work. |
| 9. | a small, depressed scar, as one of those left on the skin after smallpox or chicken pox. |
| 10. | an enclosure, usually below the level of the spectators, as for staging fights between dogs, cocks, or, formerly, bears. |
| 11. | (in a commodity exchange) a part of the floor of the exchange where trading in a particular commodity takes place: the corn pit. |
| 12. | Architecture.
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| 13. | (in a hoistway) a space below the level of the lowest floor served. |
| 14. | Auto Racing. an area at the side of a track, for servicing and refueling the cars. |
| 15. | Bowling. the sunken area of a bowling alley behind the pins, for the placement or recovery of pins that have been knocked down. |
| 16. | Track. the area forward of the takeoff point in a jumping event, as the broad jump or pole vault, that is filled with sawdust or soft earth to lessen the force of the jumper's landing. |
| 17. | the area or room of a casino containing gambling tables. |
| 18. | to mark or indent with pits or depressions: ground pitted by erosion. |
| 19. | to scar with pockmarks: His forehead was pitted by chicken pox. |
| 20. | to place or bury in a pit, as for storage. |
| 21. | to set in opposition or combat, as one against another. |
| 22. | to put (animals) in a pit or enclosure for fighting. |
| 23. | to become marked with pits or depressions. |
| 24. | (of body tissue) to retain temporarily a mark of pressure, as by a finger, instrument, etc. |
pit
pit (pĭt)
n.
A natural hollow or depression in the body or an organ.
A pockmark.
A sharp-pointed depression in the enamel surface of a tooth, caused by faulty or incomplete calcification or formed by the confluent point of two or more lobes of enamel.
To mark with cavities, depressions, or scars.
To retain an impression after being indented. Used of the skin.
| pit (pĭt) Pronunciation Key
The hard, inner layer (the endocarp) of certain drupes that are valued for their flesh, such as peaches, cherries, or olives. Not in scientific use. |
the pits
The worst possible situation, as in Spending your birthday working alone is the pits, or That job is the pits. The allusion in this term is unclear. Some think it refers to coal pits, others to armpits, and still others to the area beside an auto racecourse, also called the pits, where cars are serviced during a race. [Second half of 1900s]