From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:
pith
n 1: soft spongelike central cylinder of the stems of most
flowering plants
2: the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some
idea or experience; "the gist of the prosecutor's
argument"; "the heart and soul of the Republican Party";
"the nub of the story" [syn: kernel, substance,
core, center, essence, gist, heart, {heart and
soul}, inwardness, marrow, meat, nub, sum,
nitty-gritty]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Pith \Pith\, v. t. (Physiol.)
To destroy the central nervous system of (an animal, as a
frog), as by passing a stout wire or needle up and down the
vertebral canal.
[1913 Webster]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Pith \Pith\, n. [AS. pi?a; akin to D. pit pith, kernel, LG.
peddik. Cf. Pit a kernel.]
1. (Bot.) The soft spongy substance in the center of the
stems of many plants and trees, especially those of the
dicotyledonous or exogenous classes. It consists of
cellular tissue.
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2.
(a) (Zool.) The spongy interior substance of a feather.
(b) (Anat.) The spinal cord; the marrow.
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3. Hence: The which contains the strength of life; the vital
or essential part; concentrated force; vigor; strength;
importance; as, the speech lacked pith.
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Enterprises of great pith and moment. --Shak.
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Pith paper. Same as Rice paper, under Rice.
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