Pip vs. Pit — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman & Maham Liaqat — Updated on March 29, 2024
A pip is a small seed found inside fruits like apples and oranges, while a pit is the large, hard seed of fruits like peaches and cherries.
Difference Between Pip and Pit
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Pips are the small, often numerous seeds that reside within the flesh of many fruits, playing a crucial role in the propagation of plants like apples, oranges, and lemons. They are typically surrounded by the fruit's edible parts and can be easily swallowed or removed without much effort. On the other hand, a pit, found in fruits such as peaches, cherries, and plums, is a larger, single seed encased within a hard, protective shell, often referred to as a stone. The pit's size and hardness distinguish it significantly from the smaller, softer pips.
While pips can be found in a variety of fruits across many species, pits are characteristic of a specific group of fruits known as drupes. Drupes are defined by their hard-stoned seed surrounded by juicy flesh, which is not only a key identifier but also influences how these fruits are consumed and processed. Conversely, fruits containing pips, such as apples, are classified differently and are generally consumed whole or juiced, with the pips easily discarded.
The biological purpose of both pips and pits is seed dispersal, enabling the growth of new plants. However, the protective nature of pits suggests an evolutionary adaptation to safeguard the seed from being consumed or damaged, whereas pips may rely more on being eaten and dispersed through digestion. This difference underscores the varied strategies plants use to reproduce and spread.
From a culinary perspective, the presence of pips or pits affects how fruits are prepared and eaten. Fruits with pips are often easier to process and eat since the seeds are small and numerous, easily removed or ignored. In contrast, fruits with pits require removal of the large seed before consumption or processing, which can be more labor-intensive but necessary to enjoy the fruit's flesh.
In gardening and agriculture, the propagation techniques for fruits with pips versus those with pits may vary due to the differences in seed germination and growth patterns. Pips can often be planted directly and grow with minimal intervention, while pits may need specific conditions to germinate, such as stratification, reflecting the unique challenges and approaches needed for cultivating these fruit types.
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Comparison Chart
Size and Hardness
Small and soft.
Large and hard.
Found In
Fruits like apples, oranges, lemons.
Stone fruits like peaches, cherries, plums.
Quantity per Fruit
Often multiple.
Usually single.
Consumption
Can be swallowed or removed easily.
Requires removal due to size and hardness.
Biological Purpose
Seed dispersal through digestion.
Seed protection and dispersal.
Classification
Various fruit species.
Drupes.
Culinary Preparation
Easier to eat/process; seeds are ignorable.
Requires pit removal to consume.
Compare with Definitions
Pip
A small fruit seed.
He accidentally swallowed an apple pip.
Pit
A large, hard seed of a fruit.
She carefully removed the peach pit.
Pip
Common in many fruits.
Lemon pips can add bitterness to a dish.
Pit
Found in drupes.
Cherry pits can be used to make liqueur.
Pip
Easily removed.
She removed the pips before juicing the orange.
Pit
Requires careful removal.
Removing the pit from an avocado can be tricky.
Pip
Numerous in some fruits.
A pomegranate is filled with juicy pips.
Pit
Influences culinary use.
Pitted olives are easier to eat.
Pip
Used in propagation.
Planting pips can grow new fruit trees.
Pit
Single per fruit.
Every apricot contains one pit.
Pip
The small seed of a fruit, as that of an apple or orange.
Pit
A large hole in the ground.
Pip
A dot indicating a unit of numerical value on dice or dominoes.
Pit
A hollow or indentation in a surface.
Pip
A mark indicating the suit or numerical value of a playing card.
Pit
An area at the side of a track where racing cars are serviced and refuelled
He had a flat tyre when he came into the pits
The pit lane
Pip
A spot or speck.
Pit
An orchestra pit.
Pip
A rootstock of certain flowering plants, especially the lily of the valley.
Pit
A part of the floor of a stock exchange in which a particular stock or commodity is traded
The trading pit of the Singapore International Monetary Exchange
Pooled commodity funds liquidated positions in the corn and soybean pits
Pip
Any of the small segments that make up the surface of a pineapple.
Pit
An enclosure in which animals are made to fight
A bear pit
Pip
(Informal) A shoulder insignia indicating the rank of certain officers, as in the British Army.
Pit
A person's bed.
Pip
See blip.
Pit
A person's armpit.
Pip
A short, high-pitched radio signal.
Pit
The stone of a fruit.
Pip
A disease of birds, characterized by a thick mucous discharge that forms a crust in the mouth and throat.
Pit
Set someone or something in conflict or competition with
You'll get the chance to pit your wits against the world champions
Pip
(Slang) A minor unspecified human ailment.
Pit
Make a hollow or indentation in the surface of
Rain poured down, pitting the bare earth
Pip
To defeat.
Pit
Drive a racing car into the pits for fuel or maintenance
He pitted on lap 36 with sudden engine trouble
Pip
To blackball.
Pit
Remove the pit from (fruit).
Pip
To break through (the shell) in hatching. Used chiefly of birds.
Pit
A natural or artificial hole or cavity in the ground.
Pip
To peep or chirp.
Pit
An excavation for the removal of mineral deposits; a mine.
Pip
Any of various respiratory diseases in birds, especially infectious coryza.
Pit
The shaft of a mine.
Pip
Of humans, a disease, malaise or depression.
Pit
A concealed hole in the ground used as a trap; a pitfall.
Pip
(obsolete) A pippin, seed of any kind.
Pit
A small indentation in a surface
Pits in a windshield.
Pip
(UK) A seed inside certain fleshy fruits (compare stone/pit), such as a peach, orange, or apple.
Apple pips are edible, but don't have a pleasant taste.
Pit
A natural hollow or depression in the body or an organ.
Pip
Something or someone excellent, of high quality.
Pit
A small indented scar left in the skin by smallpox or other eruptive disease; a pockmark.
Pip
P in RAF phonetic alphabet.
Pit
(Zoology) Either of a pair of depressions between the nostril and the eye of a pit viper that contain heat-sensing organs.
Pip
One of the spots or symbols on a playing card, domino, die, etc.
Pit
(Botany) A cavity in the wall of a plant cell where there is no secondary wall, as in fibers, tracheids, and vessel elements.
Pip
One of the stylised version of the Bath star worn on the shoulder of a uniform to denote rank, e.g. of a soldier or a fireman.
Pit
(Informal) An armpit.
Pip
A spot; a speck.
Pit
An enclosed, usually sunken area in which animals, such as dogs or gamecocks, are placed for fighting.
Pip
A spot of light or an inverted V indicative of a return of radar waves reflected from an object; a blip.
Pit
The section directly in front of and below the stage of a theater, in which the musicians sit.
Pip
A piece of rhizome with a dormant shoot of the lily of the valley plant, used for propagation
Pit
Chiefly British The ground floor of a theater behind the stalls.
Pip
One of a series of very short, electronically produced tones, used, for example, to count down the final few seconds before a given time or to indicate that a caller using a payphone needs to make further payment to continue the call.
Pit
The section of an exchange where trading in a specific commodity is carried on.
Pip
The smallest price increment between two currencies in foreign exchange (forex) trading.
Pit
The gambling area of a casino.
Pip
(transitive) To remove the pips from.
Peel and pip the grapes.
Pit
A sunken area in a garage floor from which mechanics may work on cars.
Pip
To get the better of; to defeat by a narrow margin
He led throughout the race but was pipped at the post.
Pit
Often pits(Sports) An area beside an auto racecourse where cars may be refueled or serviced during a race
Pulled into the pits to have the tires rotated.
Pip
To hit with a gunshot
The hunter managed to pip three ducks from his blind.
Pit
Hell. Used with the.
Pip
To peep, to chirp
Pit
A miserable or depressing place or situation.
Pip
(avian biology) To make the initial hole during the process of hatching from an egg
Pit
Pits(Slang) The worst. Used with the
"New York politics are the pits" (Washington Star).
Pip
A contagious disease of fowls, characterized by hoarseness, discharge from the nostrils and eyes, and an accumulation of mucus in the mouth, forming a "scale" on the tongue. By some the term pip is restricted to this last symptom, the disease being called roup by them.
Pit
(Football) The middle areas of the defensive and offensive lines.
Pip
A seed, as of an apple or orange.
Pit
The single central kernel or stone of certain fruits, such as a peach or cherry.
Pip
One of the conventional figures or "spots" on playing cards, dominoes, etc.
Pit
To mark with cavities, depressions, or scars
A surface pitted with craters.
Pip
To cry or chirp, as a chicken; to peep.
To hear the chick pip and cry in the egg.
Pit
To set in direct opposition or competition
A war that pitted brother against brother.
Pip
A disease of poultry
Pit
To place, bury, or store in a pit.
Pip
A minor nonspecific ailment
Pit
To become marked with pits.
Pip
A small hard seed found in some fruits
Pit
To retain an impression after being indented. Used of the skin.
Pip
A mark on a playing card (shape depending on the suit)
Pit
To stop at a refueling area during an auto race.
Pip
A radar echo displayed so as to show the position of a reflecting surface
Pit
To extract the pit from (a fruit).
Pip
Hit with a missile from a weapon
Pit
A hole in the ground.
The meadow around the town is full of old pits.
Pip
Defeat thoroughly;
He mopped up the floor with his opponents
Pit
(motor racing) An area at a racetrack used for refueling and repairing the vehicles during a race.
Two drivers have already gone into the pit this early in the race.
Pit
(music) A section of the marching band containing mallet percussion instruments and other large percussion instruments too large to march, such as the tam tam. Also, the area on the sidelines where these instruments are placed.
Pit
A mine.
Pit
(archaeology) A hole or trench in the ground, excavated according to grid coordinates, so that the provenance of any feature observed and any specimen or artifact revealed may be established by precise measurement.
Pit
(trading) A trading pit.
Pit
The bottom part of something.
I felt pain in the pit of my stomach.
Pit
(colloquial) Armpit.
Pit
(aviation) A luggage hold.
Pit
(countable) A small surface hole or depression, a fossa.
Pit
The indented mark left by a pustule, as in smallpox.
Pit
The grave, underworld or Hell.
Pit
Formerly, that part of a theatre, on the floor of the house, below the level of the stage and behind the orchestra; now, in England, commonly the part behind the stalls; in the United States, the parquet; also, the occupants of such a part of a theatre.
Pit
(gambling) Part of a casino which typically holds tables for blackjack, craps, roulette, and other games.
Pit
(slang) A mosh pit.
Because the museum was closed for renovation, the school decided to bring its fourth-graders to the pit at a Cannibal Corpse gig instead.
Pit
(American football) The center of the line.
Pit
(hospital slang) The emergency department.
Pit
A bed.
Pit
(informal) An undesirable location, especially an unclean one.
This house is a total pit. We've got to get out of here!
Get back to the pit, dish bitch!
Pit
A seed inside a fruit; a stone or pip inside a fruit.
Pit
A shell in a drupe containing a seed.
Pit
(military) The core of an implosion nuclear weapon, consisting of the fissile material and any neutron reflector or tamper bonded to it.
Pit
(informal) A pit bull terrier.
Pit
(transitive) To make pits in; to mark with little hollows.
Exposure to acid rain pitted the metal.
Pit
(transitive) To put (an animal) into a pit for fighting.
Pit
(transitive) To bring (something) into opposition with something else.
Are you ready to pit your wits against one of the world's greatest puzzles?
Pit
To return to the pits during a race for refuelling, tyre changes, repairs etc.
Pit
(transitive) To remove the stone from a stone fruit or the shell from a drupe.
One must pit a peach to make it ready for a pie.
Pit
A large cavity or hole in the ground, either natural or artificial; a cavity in the surface of a body; an indentation
Tumble me into some loathsome pit.
Pit
Any abyss; especially, the grave, or hades.
Back to the infernal pit I drag thee chained.
He keepth back his soul from the pit.
Pit
A covered deep hole for entrapping wild beasts; a pitfall; hence, a trap; a snare. Also used figuratively.
The anointed of the Lord was taken in their pits.
Pit
A depression or hollow in the surface of the human body
Pit
Formerly, that part of a theater, on the floor of the house, below the level of the stage and behind the orchestra; now, in England, commonly the part behind the stalls; in the United States, the parquet; also, the occupants of such a part of a theater.
Pit
The endocarp of a drupe, and its contained seed or seeds; a stone; as, a peach pit; a cherry pit, etc.
Pit
To place or put into a pit or hole.
They lived like beasts, and were pitted like beasts, tumbled into the grave.
Pit
To mark with little hollows, as by various pustules; as, a face pitted by smallpox.
Pit
To introduce as an antagonist; to set forward for or in a contest; as, to pit one dog against another.
Pit
A sizeable hole (usually in the ground);
They dug a pit to bury the body
Pit
A concavity in a surface (especially an anatomical depression)
Pit
The hard inner (usually woody) layer of the pericarp of some fruits (as peaches or plums or cherries or olives) that contains the seed;
You should remove the stones from prunes before cooking
Pit
A trap in the form of a concealed hole
Pit
A surface excavation for extracting stone or slate;
A British term for `quarry' is `stone pit'
Pit
Lowered area in front of a stage where an orchestra accompanies the performers
Pit
A workplace consisting of a coal mine plus all the buildings and equipment connected with it
Pit
Set into opposition or rivalry;
Let them match their best athletes against ours
Pit a chess player against the Russian champion
He plays his two children off against each other
Pit
Mark with a scar;
The skin disease scarred his face permanently
Pit
Remove the pits from;
Pit plums and cherries
Common Curiosities
What's the difference between a pip and a pit?
Pips are small seeds in fruits like apples; pits are large, hard seeds in fruits like peaches.
Why do some fruits have pits?
Pits protect the seed within stone fruits, aiding in its survival and propagation.
Are pips and pits edible?
Pips can be swallowed but aren't particularly nutritious; pits are not edible and can be a choking hazard.
How do you remove a pit from a fruit?
Removing a pit typically requires cutting the fruit open and carefully extracting the hard seed.
What fruits are known for having pips?
Fruits like apples, oranges, and lemons have pips.
Is it easier to process fruits with pips or pits?
Fruits with pips are generally easier to process since the seeds can be easily removed or eaten.
Can you eat a pip?
Yes, pips are small enough to be swallowed but should be avoided in large quantities due to potential toxins in some seeds.
Can swallowing pips be harmful?
Swallowing small amounts is usually harmless, but some fruit seeds contain compounds that can be toxic in large quantities.
Can you plant a pit to grow a new tree?
Yes, but pits often require specific conditions to germinate, such as cold stratification.
Which fruits contain pits?
Stone fruits like peaches, cherries, and plums contain pits.
What gardening techniques are used for pips and pits?
Pips can be planted directly, while pits may require pre-treatment like stratification to encourage germination.
Do all fruits have pips or pits?
No, only certain types of fruits have pips or pits, depending on their species and classification.
How do you prepare stone fruits for cooking?
Stone fruits must have their pits removed before cooking to ensure they're ready to eat.
Do pips and pits serve the same purpose?
Both serve for seed dispersal, but their structure and method of protection differ significantly.
Why are pits hard?
The hardness of pits serves to protect the seed inside from being consumed or damaged.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
Co-written by
Maham Liaqat
