pizza

American  

[peet-suh] / ˈpit sə /

noun

• pizzas
  plural

1. 

   a flat, open-faced baked pie of Italian origin, consisting of a thin layer of bread dough topped with spiced tomato sauce and cheese, often garnished with anchovies, sausage slices, mushrooms, etc.

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pizza British  

/ ˈpiːtsə /

noun

1. a dish of Italian origin consisting of a baked disc of dough covered with cheese and tomatoes, usually with the addition of mushrooms, anchovies, sausage, or ham

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• pizzas
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of pizza

1930–35; < Italian pizza (variant pitta ), perhaps ultimately < Greek; Cf. pḗtea bran, pētítēs bran bread

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Explanation

Pizza is a round, baked crust topped with melted cheese and tomato sauce. If you order a slice of pepperoni, you must like pizza. Pizza was an Italian invention, but over the years it's become extremely popular all around the world. The first recorded use of the word pizza (literally "pie" in Italian) was in the tenth century, in a Latin document that stipulated delivery of duodecim pizze, or "twelve pizzas" to a certain bishop on Christmas Day. Pizza as we know it today was created in Naples sometime during the nineteenth century.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pizza pizzas

If Thanksgiving went sideways, we could always order pizza.

From Salon ● Oct. 28, 2026

Smaller drone delivery services are popping up too: in some US cities, customers can order flying treats from their local pizza joint or ice cream parlour.

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

It’s a big old contrarian world, and there are people who hate sunsets and pizza.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026

Sand has long cultivated a moderate image and played up pursuits like his love of hunting and predilection for gas station breakfast pizza.

From Slate ● Oct. 26, 2026

Avery and I introduce him to everybody he doesn’t know, and then he sets the wrapped present on the deck railing and goes to grab some pizza.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

You can order some appetizers or a couple of pizzas and have everyone bring their own alcohol or other beverages.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026

She has seen formats incorporating sandwiches, hot dogs and pizzas, and toppings ranging from Nashville Hot chicken and bacon strips to elote and lobster.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026

A now defunct duo of robots were supposed to be churning out pizzas at a Moto Pizza restaurant in Seattle.

From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026

Repelled, Nancy replies that she will be happily spending her summer slinging pizzas in Provincetown.

From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026

They’d scrounged up enough change last night for two small frozen pizzas, but even without Luke eating it wasn’t enough.

From "We'll Fly Away" by Bryan Bliss

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