pica

pi·ca ¹  (pk)

n.

1.

a. A printer's unit of type size, equal to 12 points or about ¹/₆ of an inch.

b. An equivalent unit of composition measurement used in determining the dimensions of lines, illustrations, or printed pages.

2. A type size for typewriters, providing ten characters to the inch.

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[Probably from Medieval Latin pca, list of church services (perhaps from the typeface used to print it).]

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pi·ca ²  (pk)

n.

An abnormal craving or appetite for nonfood substances, such as dirt, paint, or clay.

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[New Latin pca, from Latin, magpie (from its omnivorous nature).]

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pica¹

n

1. (Communication Arts / Printing, Lithography & Bookbinding) Also called em pica em a printer's unit of measurement, equal to 12 points or 0.166 ins

2. (Communication Arts / Printing, Lithography & Bookbinding) (formerly) a size of printer's type equal to 12 point

3. (Communication Arts / Printing, Lithography & Bookbinding) a typewriter type size having 10 characters to the inch

[from Anglo-Latin pīca list of ecclesiastical regulations, apparently from Latin pīca magpie, with reference to its habit of making collections of miscellaneous items; the connection between the original sense (ecclesiastical list) and the typography meanings is obscure]

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pica²

n

(Medicine / Pathology) Pathol an abnormal craving to ingest substances such as clay, dirt, or hair, sometimes occurring during pregnancy, in persons with chlorosis, etc.

[from medical Latin, from Latin: magpie, being an allusion to its omnivorous feeding habits]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	pica - an eating disorder, frequent in children, in which non-nutritional objects are eaten persistently geophagia, geophagy - eating earth, clay, chalk; occurs in some primitive tribes, sometimes in cases of nutritional deficiency or obsessive behavior eating disorder - a disorder of the normal eating routine
	2.	pica - a linear unit (1/6 inch) used in printing pica em, em linear measure, linear unit - a unit of measurement of length in, inch - a unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot point - a linear unit used to measure the size of type; approximately 1/72 inch en, nut - half the width of an em
	3.	Pica - magpies genus Pica bird genus - a genus of birds Corvidae, family Corvidae - crow; raven; rook; jackdaw; chough; magpie; jay magpie - long-tailed black-and-white crow that utters a raucous chattering call

Translations

pica [ˈpaɪkə] N (Med, Vet) → pica f (Typ) → cícero m