Link Centre Dictionary

pitchfork

pitch·fork

UK/ˈpɪt͡ʃˌfɔɹk/ US/ˈpɪˌtʃfɔrk/ uncommon informal rare
noun (1) verb (1)

noun

1.

a long-handled hand tool with sharp widely spaced prongs for lifting and pitching hay

verb

1.

lift with a pitchfork

  • “pitchfork hay”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English pichfork, pycchefork, pychforke, pikeforke, pikkforke, pic-forcke, equivalent to pitch (verb) + fork (i.e. "a fork used for pitching or throwing material, like hay"). The figurative sense (noun sense 4) is an allusion to a crowd of farmers wielding their farm tools as weapons.

Phrases

  • rain pitchforks

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Part of

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.