What does pitcher mean?
A pitcher is a sizable jug, usually made of glass, ceramic, metal, or plastic, that is used to serve water, juice, milk, and other drinks. It is commonly paired with a liquid: a pitcher of water, a pitcher of lemonade, or a pitcher of beer. In baseball, the same word identifies the player on the fielding team who throws the ball to the batter. A starting pitcher typically begins a game, while a relief pitcher enters later, often in place of a starter who has performed poorly or reached the team’s pitch limit. The word can also refer to a traveling salesperson, a use that is now dated except in expressions such as a medicine pitch or a vacuum-cleaner salesman. The varied meanings make pitcher a useful example of how one ordinary word can belong to both household and sporting vocabulary.
nounA pitcher is a large jug or container for holding and pouring liquids, especially water, milk, or juice. In baseball, it also means the player who throws the ball toward the batter.
- A large container with a handle and spout, used for holding and pouring liquids.
- A baseball player whose role is to throw the ball to the batter.
- A person who travels selling goods, especially by pitching them to prospective customers; this sense is now dated or uncommon.
"She poured a glass of lemonade from the ceramic pitcher."
"The server placed a chilled pitcher of water on the table."
"The opposing pitcher retired three consecutive batters in the fifth inning."
The plural is used for multiple containers or multiple baseball players.
"The umpire handed the new pitchers their scorecards."
One word can mean both the container you pass around at dinner and the athlete trying to strike out a batter.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does pitcher come from?
The word is recorded in Middle English as picher, continuing an Anglo-French form that developed from Medieval Latin. The precise origin of the older forms is uncertain, and the word’s modern spelling was established in English. Its separate use for a baseball player dates from the early history of organized baseball in the nineteenth century and developed by analogy with the action of pitching the ball.
Related word forms
How pitcher is actually used
The container sense is standard in everyday English. The baseball sense is also common in North American English and in sports reporting generally. The sales-pitcher sense is chiefly North American and is now largely formal or dated.