p

¹ American  

abbreviation

1. Music. softly.

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p ² American  

abbreviation

1. penny; pence.

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P ³ American  

[pee] / pi /

Or p

noun

plural

P's, Ps, p's, ps

1. the sixteenth letter of the English alphabet, a consonant.

2. any spoken sound represented by the letter P or p, as in pet, supper, top, etc.

3. something having the shape of a P .

4. a written or printed representation of the letter P or p.

5. a device, as a printer's type, for reproducing the letter P or p.

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P ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. Education. (as a rating of student performance) passing.

2. Chess. pawn.

3. Electronics. plate.

4. poor.

5. Grammar. predicate.

6. Protestant.

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P ⁵ American  

Symbol.

1. the 16th in order or in a series.

2. (sometimes lowercase) the medieval Roman numeral for 400.

3. Genetics. parental.

4. Chemistry. phosphorus.

5. Physics.

   1. power.

   2. pressure.

   3. Chemistry. proton.

   4. space inversion.

   5. poise.

6. Biochemistry. proline.

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p- ⁶ American  

abbreviation

1. Chemistry. para-.

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P- ⁷ American  

abbreviation

1. Military. (in designations of fighter aircraft) pursuit.

   P-38.

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p. ⁸ American  

abbreviation

1. father.

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p. ⁹ American  

abbreviation

1. Music. softly.

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p. ¹⁰ American  

abbreviation

1. after.

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p. ¹¹ American  

abbreviation

1. page.

2. part.

3. participle.

4. past.

5. Chess. pawn.

6. penny; pence.

7. per.

8. Grammar. person.

9. peseta.

10. peso.

11. pint.

12. pipe.

13. Baseball. pitcher.

14. pole.

15. population.

16. president.

17. pressure.

18. purl.

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P. ¹² American  

abbreviation

1. father.

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P. ¹³ American  

abbreviation

1. pastor.

2. peseta.

3. peso.

4. post.

5. president.

6. pressure.

7. priest.

8. prince.

9. progressive.

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P ¹ British  

symbol

1. chem phosphorus

2. physics

   1. pressure

   2. power

   3. parity

   4. poise

3. (on road signs) parking

4. chess pawn

5. currency

   1. (the former) peseta

   2. peso

   3. pataca

   4. pula

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abbreviation

1. Portugal (international car registration)

2. pharmacy only: used to label medicines that can be obtained without a prescription, but only at a shop at which there is a pharmacist

p. ² British  

abbreviation

1. page

2. part

3. participle

4. past

5. per

6. post

7. pro

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p ³ British  

symbol

1. (in Britain) penny or pence

2. music piano: an instruction to play quietly

3. pico-

4. physics

   1. momentum

   2. proton

   3. pressure

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p ⁴ British  

/ piː /

noun

1. the 16th letter and 12th consonant of the modern English alphabet

2. a speech sound represented by this letter, usually a voiceless bilabial stop, as in pig

3. to be careful to behave correctly and use polite or suitable language

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p- ⁵ British  

prefix

1. short for para- 1

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p Idioms  

1. see mind one's p's and q's.

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Etymology

Origin of p¹

From the Italian word piano

Origin of p.⁸

From the Latin word pater

Origin of p.⁹

From the Italian word piano

Origin of p.¹⁰

From the Latin word post

Origin of P.¹²

From the Latin word Pater

Example Sentences

Rajadhyaksha points out there is a “remarkably consistent pattern p st most geopolitical conflicts …of an initial shock…then a grind back as economic fundamentals reassert themselves.”

From MarketWatch • Mar. 26, 2026

For instance, a person whose p tau217 levels increased at age 60 developed symptoms roughly 20 years later.

From Science Daily • Feb. 23, 2026

"It's political with a small p - there's enough that roots us in the real world but the world is too complicated to link it directly and I think it would be inappropriate."

From BBC • Aug. 20, 2025

It also recognizes “the fundamental role” of soccer’s international governing body, FIFA, and the important role of regional and national soccer federations, as well as relevant associations, in p romoting the game.

From Seattle Times • May 7, 2024

For Galileo’s use of the term, see below, p.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton