pellet

views updated May 21 2018

pel·let / ˈpelit/ • n. a small, rounded, compressed mass of a substance: fish food pellets. ∎  a piece of small shot or other lightweight bullet. ∎  Ornithol. a small mass of bones and feathers regurgitated by a bird of prey or other bird. ∎  a small round piece of animal feces, esp. from a rabbit or rodent.• v. (-let·ed, -let·ing) [tr.] 1. form or shape (a substance, esp. animal food) into pellets.2. hit with or as though with pellets: the last drops of rain were pelleting the windshield.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

pellet

views updated May 14 2018

pellet. Band enriched with a series of closely spaced discs or half-balls found in Romanesque architecture.

A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture JAMES STEVENS CURL

pellet

views updated May 29 2018

pellet small ball; ball of stone used as a missile, cannon-shot, (now) small shot. XIV. ME. pelote, pelet — (O)F. pelote :- Rom. *pilotta, dim. of L. pila ball.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

pellet

views updated Jun 08 2018

pellet (pel-it) n. a small pill, especially one used as an implant.

A Dictionary of Nursing

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