- pitch (n.)
- "tar," O.E. pic, from L. pix (gen. picis) "pitch," from PIE base *pi- "sap, juice" (cf. Gk. pissa, Lith. pikis, O.C.S. piklu "pitch," related to L. pinus; see pine (n.)).
- pitch (v.)
- c.1200, "to thrust in, fasten, settle," probably from an unrecorded O.E. *piccean, related to the root of the verb prick. The original past tense was pight. Sense in pitch a tent (late 13c.) is from notion of "driving in" the pegs; meaning "throw a ball" evolved late 14c. from that of "hit the mark." Noun meaning "act of throwing" is recorded from 1833. The noun meaning "act of plunging headfirst" is from 1762; sense of "slope, degree, inclination" is from 1540s; musical sense is from 1590s; but the connection of these is obscure. Sales pitch is attested from 1876, probably extended from meaning "stall pitched as a sales booth" (1811). Pitch-pipe is attested from 1711. Pitcher "one who pitches" is recorded from 1722, originally hay into a wagon, etc.; baseball sense first recorded 1845.