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• pe
  pe

  noun

  the 17th letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
• PE
  PE

  abbreviation

  Prince Edward Island, Canada (approved for postal use).
• p/e
  p/e

  abbreviation

  price-earnings ratio.
• p.e.
  p.e.

  abbreviation

  printer's error.
• P.E.
  P.E.

  abbreviation

  Petroleum Engineer.

pe

¹ American  

[pey] / peɪ /

Or peh

noun

1. the 17th letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

2. either of the consonant sounds represented by this letter.

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PE ² American  

abbreviation

1. Prince Edward Island, Canada (approved for postal use).

2. Biology, Ecology. possibly extinct.

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p/e ³ American  

Or P/E,

abbreviation

1. price-earnings ratio.

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p.e. ⁴ American  

Or P.E.

abbreviation

1. printer's error.

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P.E. ⁵ American  

abbreviation

1. Petroleum Engineer.

2. physical education.

3. Presiding Elder.

4. Statistics. probable error.

5. Professional Engineer.

6. Protestant Episcopal.

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PE ¹ British  

abbreviation

1. physical education

2. potential energy

3. Presiding Elder

4. (esp in postal addresses) Prince Edward Island (Canadian Province)

5. Also: p.e.  printer's error

6. statistics probable error

7. Protestant Episcopal

8. (in South Africa) Port Elizabeth

9. Peru (international car registration)

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pe ² British  

/ peɪ, pe /

noun

1. the 17th letter in the Hebrew alphabet (פ or, at the end of a word, ף) transliterated as p or, when final, ph

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pe ³ British  

abbreviation

1. Peru

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Etymology

Origin of pe

1895–1900; < Hebrew pē, akin to peh mouth

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pe PE p/e p.e. P.E.

Italy was the latest victim of what local media have taken to calling Jagger's "pe frio" — a term describing the bad luck that he brings teams that translates literally as "cold foot."

From US News ● Jun. 25, 2014

Italy was the latest victim of what local media have taken to calling Jagger's "pe frio", a term describing the bad luck that he brings teams.

From The Guardian ● Jun. 24, 2014

At Neah Bay the average was 1.0 fish pe rod, and just over half the catch was coho.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 5, 2010

"We must not be afraid of being pe culiar," declared Delegate L. Hugh Doncaster before 900 fellow Quakers from 35 nations gathered at Quaker-founded Guilford College in Greens boro, N.C.

From Time Magazine Archive

"Ah, montame!" said the baron, in his turn, with a still lower bow; "id vould pe fery bretty in any room mit you."

From Fr?d?rique; vol. 1 by Charles Paul de Kock

Michaela Wilson launched the Pendle In And Out Of School Clothes Project in Colne, Lancashire four years ago, after she realised just the purchase of her son's PE kit would cost £128.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Arday worked as a PE teacher before earning his doctorate at Liverpool John Moores University and going on to teach at Roehampton, Durham and Glasgow.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

Laboratory tests showed that the modified process successfully converted PET, PE and PP into high-purity hydrogen.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 31, 2026

Bain Capital secured $10.5 billion for its biggest-ever Asia fund in May, while Blackstone followed in June with roughly $13 billion for its largest regional PE fund.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

Julia yanks me up from the ground, and for just a tiny second I can imagine flying right over the row of portables and far, far away from PE.

From "A Good Kind of Trouble" by Lisa Moore Ramée

On a trailing p/e basis, the benchmark index is at 25.7 times earnings compared with an average of 15 since 1900.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 19, 2026

With two 50% market declines within 16 years, virtually zero interest rates, high p/e multiples...

From New York Times ● Nov. 4, 2016

But why not abandon finance altogether, as some investors want, especially because the markets nowadays value it, like banks, at a far lower p/e ratio than GE’s industrial businesses?

From Economist ● Jun. 26, 2014

Google has a p/e of 19 these days but had also had a p/e in the 100s when it did its IPO.

From The Guardian ● May 16, 2012

The average p/e ratio for the past 20 years is 20.4.

From BusinessWeek ● Jul. 6, 2010

The kids racing down the linoleum hallway take Spanish, art, p.e. and government here.

From Time Magazine Archive

“The only P.E. that belongs in youth sports is play equity,” Simril said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026

And three cheers for those Van Nuys players recruited out of P.E. class.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2025

Experience: Before joining McKenna’s staff recently, served variously at Dorsey High School since 1998 as a P.E. and psychology teacher, girls’ basketball head coach, athletic director and dean of students.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2024

Yahushua died in August 2023 after collapsing during his P.E. class at Canyon Lake Middle School in Lake Elsinore.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2024

Mrs. Pisano, the athletic director who usually chases anyone wearing shoes that aren’t sneakers out of the gym, is probably screaming into the P.E. supply closet.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison