pizza

American  

[peet-suh] / ˈpit sə /

noun

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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Etymology

Origin of pizza

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

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

OpenAI in recent weeks has seen a surge in businesses publishing so-called ChatGPT apps, including rollouts from Starbucks, Little Caesars Pizza and Wyndham Hotels last month.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

Shares of Domino’s Pizza led declines in the S&P 500 index, after the company lowered its U.S. same-store sales growth estimates for the year and said sales softened during the first quarter.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 27, 2026

For their pizza program, the Kremer brothers teamed up with Avalou’s Italian Pizza Company, which is run by Louis Lombardi who starred in “The Sopranos.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026

Ahmad worked at Pizza Hut and Arby’s, and he studied computer science.

From Slate • Apr. 19, 2026

Pizza is the food I always want when I’m feeling alone.

From "Invisible Inkling" by Emily Jenkins