piece

noun

1. A part of a larger whole, usually in such a form that it is able to be separated from other parts.

   “Near-synonyms: aspect, portion”

   “I’d like another piece of pie.”

   “I've lost a piece of this jigsaw puzzle.”

   “No man is an Iland, intire of it ſelfe; euery man is a peece of the Continent, a part of the maine; […]”

2. A single item belonging to a class of similar items.

   “a piece of machinery”

   “a piece of software”

   “a useful piece of advice”

   “"Squalled at me that she owned the business and that she wouldn't take any back talk from me and that the piece wasn't for sale. What could I do?"”

   “[The researchers] noticed many of their pieces of [plastic marine] debris sported surface pits around two microns across. Such pits are about the size of a bacterial cell. Closer examination showed that some of these pits did, indeed, contain bacteria, […]”

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.

   “Pawns, unlike pieces, move only in one direction: forward.”

   “It is not permitted to move a piece to a square occupied by a piece of the same colour. […] Consequently, in the initial position the white pieces and pawns are placed on the first and second ranks; the black pieces and pawns on the eighth and seventh ranks.”

4. A coin, especially one valued at less than the principal unit of currency.

   “a sixpenny piece”

5. An artistic creation, such as a painting, sculpture, musical composition, literary work, etc.

   “She played two beautiful pieces on the piano.”

6. An article published in the press.

   “Today's paper has an interesting piece on medical research.”

   “No, I didn't read the piece on China's faceless masses, I was, I was checking out the lingerie ads.”

7. An artillery gun.

   “[…] all our Ammunition was spent. Those of us who had Money made Slugs of it; their next Shift was to take the middle Screws out of their Guns, and charge their Pieces with them.”

8. (US, colloquial)A gun.

   “He's packin' a piece!”

   “I wanted peace, but now my piece is clearing out the block.”

   “It was do or be done. Get or get gotten. It was self-preservation like I'd never felt before, and when Rome passed me his piece I didn't even hesitate as I raised that bitch in the air and aimed it at Vyreen.”

   “"This is just a cover story," Clay says to O5-8, not taking his eyes off Marion. "It's a good one, but she's had it worked out in advance." "Clay, lose the piece," says the O5. Grudgingly, Clay does so.”

9. (Canada, US, colloquial)A toupee or wig, especially when worn by a man.

   “The announcer is wearing a new piece.”

10. (Ireland, Scotland, UK, US, dialectal)A slice or other quantity of bread, eaten on its own; a sandwich or light snack.

    “My grannie came and gived them all a piece and jam and cups of water then I was to bring them back out to the street and play a game.”

11. (US, colloquial, vulgar)A sexual encounter; from piece of ass or piece of tail.

    “I got a piece at lunchtime.”

12. (US, colloquial, mildly, vulgar)A shoddy or worthless object (usually applied to consumer products like vehicles or appliances).

    “Ugh, my new computer is such a piece. I'm taking it back to the store tomorrow.”

13. (US, slang)A cannabis pipe.
14. (uncountable)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.

    “he got a piece of that one; she got a piece of the ball[…]and it's going foul.”

15. (dated, derogatory, sometimes)An individual; a person.

    “If I had not been a piece of a logician before I came to him.”

    “Thy mother was a piece of virtue.”

    “His own spirit is as unsettled a piece as there is in all the world.”

16. (obsolete)A castle; a fortified building.

    “Then enteryng into league with Philip the French king, he receyued againe all the holdes and peeces which his father had loſt a little before, […]”

    “the ranſack of that peece”

17. (US)A pacifier; a dummy.
18. (colloquial)A distance or amount.

    “a far piece”

    “located a fair piece away from their camp”

    “I never did believe that he was in it. He's a piece too mean-spirited to have the nerve.”

19. A structured practice row, often used for performance evaluation.

    “At practice we rowed four 5,000 meter pieces.”

    “That last piece was torture.”

20. An amount of work to be done at one time; a unit of piece work.
21. (slang)An ounce of a recreational drug.

    “In fact, that was back during the era when you could buy a piece of heroin, an ounce of heroin, for $500 and cut it three times for a 3-to-1 cut on it and the dope would still be good.”

verb

1. (transitive, usually)To assemble (something real or figurative).

   “These clues allowed us to piece together the solution to the mystery.”

   “His adversaries […] pieced themselves together in a joint opposition against him.”

2. To make, enlarge, or repair, by the addition of a piece or pieces; to patch; often with out.

   “to piece a garment”

   “You have broke it, cousin: and , by my life , you shall make it whole again ; you shall piece it out with a piece of your performance”

3. (slang)To produce a work of graffiti more complex than a tag.

   ““It didn't rain, so I decided to come piece with you.[…]” We never finished that piece.”

   “It is incorrect to say that toys tag and masters piece; toys just do bad tags, bad throw-ups, and bad pieces.”

   “It is often used to collect other writer's tags, and future plans for bombing and piecing.”

4. (dated, informal, intransitive, often, with-on)To eat small quantities of food between meals; to snack; to take small or intermittent bites at a food item.

   “There he was, piecing on the ham.”

   “Do not piece between meals.”

   ““Piecing” between meals often means eating sweet crackers, candy, or sweet beverages at almost any hour. These taste good but spoil the appetite for more desirable foods. What's eaten between meals should make a real contribution to daily food intake: fruit, or tomato juice, or a small glass of milk, a small peanut butter or cheese sandwich and the like are good choices. And a mid-morning or mid-afternoon pick-up does not interfere with appetite as irregular nibbling or piecing does.”