Definition for pete (2 of 5)
Definition for pete (3 of 5)
Definition for pete (4 of 5)
Definition for pete (5 of 5)
Examples from the Web for pete
Some, like Pete, who McKell has become quite close with, have migrated to and from other types of nomadic communities.
Pete stuck his thumb out at the age of 17 and hitch hiked out of Birmingham, England.
She has been married to the music critic Pete Paphides (“the loveliest man who ever lived”) since 1999.
Somewhere, somehow, the author Pete Dexter forgot how to have fun.The Stacks: Pete Dexter on What It’s Like to Lose the Knack of Having Fun|Pete Dexter|September 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In Nebraska, Democrat Chuck Hassebrook is within striking distance of Republican Pete Ricketts.
One of the first things Pete said was, Do you remember that Maryland fair?Drum Taps in Dixie|Delavan S. Miller
Pete said helplessly to old man Greiffenhagen: "Take me outer this!"Bunch Grass|Horace Annesley Vachell
The other hesitated, then asked, "Does Pete want Dad to take a gun?"The Shepherd of the Hills|Harold Bell Wright
His father is too important a man in this country for Pete to be harmed.The Pirates of Shan|Harold Leland Goodwin
He was enraged at her blindness to Pete Cheever's duplicity or her complacency with it.We Can't Have Everything|Rupert Hughes
British Dictionary definitions for pete (1 of 6)
British Dictionary definitions for pete (2 of 6)
- any shrub or climbing plant of the rosaceous genus Rosa, typically having prickly stems, compound leaves, and fragrant flowers
- (in combination)rosebush; rosetree
- a moderate purplish-red colour; purplish pink
- (as adjective)rose paint
- a cut for a diamond or other gemstone, having a hemispherical faceted crown and a flat base
- a gem so cut
Word Origin for rose
British Dictionary definitions for pete (3 of 6)
British Dictionary definitions for pete (4 of 6)
Word Origin for rosé
British Dictionary definitions for pete (5 of 6)
British Dictionary definitions for pete (6 of 6)
Word Origin and History for pete (1 of 4)
familiar form of masc. proper name Peter. For Pete's sake is attested from 1903 in a list of children's expressions published in Massachusetts, probably a euphemistic use of the disciple's name in place of Christ; as an exclamation or quasi-oath, Peter! was in use 14c., but this likely is not connected to the modern use.
Word Origin and History for pete (1 of 4)
Old English rose, from Latin rosa (source of Italian and Spanish rosa, French rose; also source of Dutch roos, German Rose, Swedish ros, Polish rozha, Russian roza, Lithuanian rozhe, Hungarian rózsa, Irish ros, Welsh rhosyn, etc.), probably via Italian and Greek dialects from Greek rhodon "rose" (Aeolic wrodon), ultimately from Persian *vrda-.
But cf. Tucker: "The rose was a special growth of Macedonia & the Thracian region as well as of Persia, & the Lat. & Gk. names prob. came from a Thraco-Phrygian source." Aramaic warda is from Old Persian; the modern Persian cognate, via the usual sound changes, is gul, source of Turkish gül "rose." Klein proposes a PIE *wrdho- "thorn, bramble."
The form of the English word was influenced by the French. Used as a color name since 1520s. In English civil wars of 15c., the white rose was the badge of the House of York, the red of its rival Lancaster. In the figurative sense, bed of roses is from 1590s. To come up roses is attested from 1969; the image, though not the wording, from 1855. To come out smelling like a rose is from 1968. Rose of Sharon (Song of Sol. ii:1) is attested from 1610s and named for the fertile strip of coastal Palestine. The flower has not been identified; used in U.S. since 1847 of the Syrian hibiscus.
Word Origin and History for pete (2 of 4)
light red wine, 1897, from French vin rosé, literally "pink wine."
Word Origin and History for pete (3 of 4)
masc. proper name, from Old High German Kuonrat, literally "bold in counsel," from kuon "bold" + rat "counsel" (see read (v.)).
Idioms and Phrases with pete (1 of 2)
Also, Peter. See for one's (Pete's) sake; honest to god (Pete); rob Peter to pay Paul.
Idioms and Phrases with pete (2 of 2)
see bed of roses; come up roses; see through rose-colored glasses.