pitta

[ pit-uh ]

noun
  1. any of several brilliantly colored, passerine birds of the family Pittidae, inhabiting dark, Old World, tropical forests.

Origin of pitta

1
First recorded in 1830–40, pitta is from the Telugu word piṭṭa bird

Words Nearby pitta

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use pitta in a sentence

  • For example, for someone who has a fiery nature or pitta dosha, Dr. Patel would recommend coconut oil, which is cooling.

  • To this class, to the class that hide their light under a bushel, the beautiful Indian pitta (pitta brachyura) belongs.

    Jungle Folk | Douglas Dewar
  • There is at least one favoured compound in Madras where a pitta, or possibly a pair of them, spends the cool-weather season.

    Jungle Folk | Douglas Dewar
  • It is strange that so retiring a bird as the pitta should find its way with such frequency into inhabited houses.

    Jungle Folk | Douglas Dewar
  • It seems to me that the pitta dislikes cold and wind, and therefore naturally seeks any shelter that presents itself.

    Jungle Folk | Douglas Dewar
  • Possibly another reason why the pitta so frequently enters bungalows is to avoid the crows.

    Jungle Folk | Douglas Dewar

British Dictionary definitions for pitta (1 of 2)

pitta1

/ (ˈpɪtə) /


noun
  1. another name for pitta bread

British Dictionary definitions for pitta (2 of 2)

pitta2

/ (ˈpɪtə) /


noun
  1. any of various small brightly coloured ground-dwelling tropical birds of the genus Pitta

Origin of pitta

2
C19: from Telugu

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012