pitt

pitt — biographical name

1. the surname Pitt when it points to William Pitt (1708 to 1778), later made the f

1.biographical name
Definition

the surname Pitt when it points to William Pitt (1708 to 1778), later made the first Earl of Chatham, a British politician who led wartime ministries during the mid-1700s and was popularly called the Elder Pitt to mark him off from his son.

Example

Our history teacher described Pitt the Elder as the architect of British victory in the Seven Years' War.

name pattern: Pitt the Elder

Maya's essay argued that Pitt the Elder pushed Britain into the Seven Years' War against France.

topic phrasing: an essay arguing about Pitt the Elder

Common collocations
  • William Pitt the Elder
  • Pitt the Elder
  • the Earl of Chatham
  • Pitt's wartime ministry
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

William Pitt the Elder

(the) Earl of Chatham

Pitt the Elder

Usage Note

Almost always written with a tag that pins down the person, since two famous Pitts share the same surname. The common forms are 'William Pitt the Elder', 'Pitt the Elder', and after 1766 'the Earl of Chatham'. Distinguish from sense 2, which names his son.

Common Mistakes

Pitt led Britain during the Napoleonic Wars in the 1790s.
Pitt the Younger led Britain during the Napoleonic Wars in the 1790s.
the wartime leader against Napoleon was the son, not the Elder Pitt.
I read about the William Pitt the Elder yesterday.
I read about William Pitt the Elder yesterday.
personal names do not take 'the' before the first name.

2. the surname Pitt when it points to William Pitt (1759 to 1806), the son of the E

2.biographical name
Definition

the surname Pitt when it points to William Pitt (1759 to 1806), the son of the Elder Pitt, who became Britain's youngest prime minister at twenty-four and led the country through most of the wars against revolutionary and Napoleonic France.

Example

King George III asked Pitt the Younger to form a government in Downing Street in late 1783.

biographical fact pattern: King George III asked Pitt the Younger to form a government

Lina's thesis compared Pitt the Younger and Charles James Fox as rival voices on the French Revolution.

topic phrasing: comparing Pitt the Younger and Fox

Common collocations
  • William Pitt the Younger
  • Pitt the Younger
  • Pitt's government
  • Pitt's war ministry
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

William Pitt the Younger

Pitt the Younger

Pitt's government / ministry

Usage Note

Like sense 1, almost always written with a tag (most often 'Pitt the Younger' or 'William Pitt the Younger') because the surname alone is ambiguous. In British political writing, an unqualified 'Pitt's government' usually means the Younger, since his terms were longer and more recent. Distinguish from sense 1, which names his father.

Common Mistakes

Pitt the Younger inherited the title Earl of Chatham.
Pitt the Elder held the title Earl of Chatham.
the Earl of Chatham title belonged to the father, not the son.
The Younger Pitt was elected president of Britain in 1783.
The Younger Pitt became prime minister of Britain in 1783.
Britain has a prime minister, not a president.

Word family

  • Pittite
    noun
  • Chathamite
    noun

Synonym discussion

Sense: biographical name/1

All four labels can point to the Pitt family in British history, but they pick out different people or different stages of one life. 'Pitt the Elder' and 'Pitt the Younger' are the standard pair used in schools and reference works to keep father and son apart; in any sentence where both might be meant, learners should always add the tag. 'Earl of Chatham' is the title given to the father in 1766, so it always means the Elder Pitt and is common in more formal historical prose. 'The Great Commoner' is an older popular nickname for the same man, but only for the part of his career before he took the earldom and left the House of Commons. A safe rule: if the date is before 1766, 'the Great Commoner' fits; after 1766, 'the Earl of Chatham' fits; and 'Pitt the Younger' is always the son.

Pitt the ElderPitt the YoungerEarl of Chathamthe Great Commoner

Common collocations

Nouns

  • Pitt the Elder
  • Pitt the Younger
  • Pitt's government
  • Pitt's ministry
  • the Pitt family

Phrases

  • William Pitt the Elder
  • William Pitt the Younger
  • the Earl of Chatham
  • the Great Commoner

Prepositions

  • under Pitt
  • during Pitt's ministry
  • after Pitt

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

The surname Pitt comes from an Old English word meaning a hole or pit dug in the ground, and was first used as a label for a family that lived next to such a feature, perhaps a chalk pit or a clay pit. From a place-based nickname it became a hereditary family name in the south of England by the late Middle Ages. Two members of one Pitt family became so famous in 18th-century British politics that the bare surname now usually points to them in history writing, especially when paired with the tag 'the Elder' or 'the Younger'.