the pits

English

Etymology

Theorized to be a shortened form of armpits, i.e., somewhere or something unpleasant or undesirable. First use appears c. 1953. See cite below.

Noun

the pits pl (plural only)

1. (slang) Something miserable or unpleasant.

   Synonym: the dumps

   Doing it once is no fun, but doing it over because you lost your work is the pits.

   • 1953, Joseph Becker Phillips, Malcolm Muir, Raymond Moley, Rex Smith, Samuel Thurston Williamson (contributors), Newsweek‎^[1], volume 42, page 54:

     A bad exam experience would be ‘I'm wasted’ at Howard,..‘It was the pits’ at Vassar.

   • 1995, HAL Laboratory, EarthBound, Nintendo, Super Nintendo Entertainment System:

     Ain't that the pits... I'm actually gonna have to wait for another customer in this crazy heat? That's harsh...

Anagrams

• pettish