Webster's English Dictionary

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pith

1. pith \'pith\ n [ME, fr. OE pitha; akin to MD & MLG pit pith, pit] 1a: a 
   usu. continuous central strand of spongy tissue in the stems of most  
   vascular plants that prob. functions chiefly in storage 1b: any of various 
   loose spongy plant tissues that resemble true pith  1c: the soft or spongy 
   interior of a part of the body  2a: the essential part : CORE  2b: 
   substantial quality (as of meaning)  3: IMPORTANCE, SIGNIFICANCE 
2. pith vt 1a: to kill (as cattle) by piercing or severing the spinal cord  
   1b: to destroy the spinal cord or central nervous system of (as a frog) us 
   u. by passing a wire or needle up and down the vertebral canal 2: to remove 
   the pith from (a plant stem)