- Also called: em, pica em a printer's unit of measurement, equal to 12 points or 0.166 ins
- a typewriter type size having 10 characters to the inch
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
pi•ca1 /ˈpaɪkə/USA pronunciation
n. [countable], pl. -cas.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Printinga size of type, widely used in typewriters, having 10 characters to the inch. Compare elite (def. 2).
pi•ca1
(pī′kə),USA pronunciation n. [Print.]
pi•ca2 (pī′kə),USA pronunciation n. [Pathol.]
- Printinga 12-point type of a size between small pica and English.
- Printingthe depth of this type size as a unit of linear measurement for type, pages containing type, etc.;
one sixth of an inch. - Printinga 12-point type, widely used for typewriters, having 10 characters to the inch. Cf. elite (def. 4).
- Medieval Latin pīca pie4, on the model of brevier, canon1 (def. 14)
- apparently 1580–90
pi•ca2 (pī′kə),USA pronunciation n. [Pathol.]
- Pathologyan abnormal appetite or craving for substances that are not fit to eat, as chalk or clay, common in malnutrition, pregnancy, etc.
- Neo-Latin, special use of Latin pīca jay, magpie, with ref. to its omnivorous feeding
- 1555–65
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
pica /ˈpaɪkə/ n
pica /ˈpaɪkə/ n
- an abnormal craving to ingest substances such as clay, dirt, or hair, sometimes occurring during pregnancy, in persons with chlorosis, etc
'pica' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):