dice

American  

[dahys] / daɪs /

plural noun

singular

die

1. small cubes of plastic, ivory, bone, or wood, marked on each side with one to six spots, usually used in pairs in games of chance or in gambling.

2. poker dice.

3. any of various games, especially gambling games, played by shaking and throwing from two to six dice or poker dice onto a flat surface.

4. any small cubes.

5. Auto Racing. a jockeying for lead position between two or more drivers in which tactics are used to pass or keep from being passed.

---

verb (used with object)

diced, dicing

1. to cut into small cubes.

2. to decorate with cubelike figures.

3. to lose by gambling with dice (often followed byaway ).

verb (used without object)

diced, dicing

1. to play at dice.

2. to cause or bring about by gambling with dice.

3. Auto Racing. to duel with another car or cars in a dice.

idioms

1. no dice, of no use or help; ineffective.

dice British  

/ daɪs /

plural noun

1. cubes of wood, plastic, etc, each of whose sides has a different number of spots (1 to 6), used in games of chance and in gambling to give random numbers

2. Also called: die.  (functioning as singular) one of these cubes

3. small cubes as of vegetables, chopped meat, etc

4. slang an expression of refusal or rejection

---

verb

1. to cut (food, etc) into small cubes

2. (intr) to gamble with or play at a game involving dice

3. (intr) to take a chance or risk (esp in the phrase dice with death )

4. informal (tr) to abandon or reject

5. (tr) to decorate or mark with dicelike shapes

dice More Idioms  

1. see load the dice; no deal (dice).

---

Usage

Plural word for dice Dice is the plural form of the singular noun die, referring to a small cube of plastic, ivory, or other material, marked on each side with one to six spots. The more standard English plural form dies is used for other senses of the word die but not for the small cube. Dice derives directly from this irregular noun’s original pluralization in Middle English. Dice is sometimes treated as both a singular and plural form of die. The singular die is less commonly used.

Other Word Forms

• dicer noun

Etymology

Origin of dice

1300–50; Middle English dees, dis, dyce (singular and plural), dyces (plural) < Old French de(i)z, dés (plural); die ²

Explanation

Dice are what you roll when you're playing Yahtzee or Monopoly; they are two cubes marked with dots on each side that represent the numbers one through six. The noun dice is the plural form of the singular die. Although many people use the word dice when they're talking about a single die, it's actually only correct to call two or more of the dotted cubes dice. You can also use the word as a verb to mean "chop into tiny pieces or cubes." You might, for example, read a recipe instruction that says: "Dice three tomatoes."

Example Sentences

Previously, the first known dice dated back to the Bronze Age about 5,500 years ago, in such places as Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley of Asia.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

"A piece of bone the size of a dice contains 74 kilometers of tunnels," says Qin.

From Science Daily • Mar. 3, 2026

Once again, Thomas substituted the word’s most natural meaning for an alternative that loads the dice: Miscarriage, he wrote, is what happens any time mail fails “to arrive properly,” no matter the reason.

From Slate • Feb. 24, 2026

Both men had lost to Anthony Cacace since their first fight, raising the stakes for what felt like a last roll of the dice.

From BBC • Feb. 21, 2026

“Swipe your fingers across the nearest desktop computer panel. The dice tumbler app is up and running!”

From "Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" by Chris Grabenstein