pellet

[ pel-it ]

noun

1. a small, rounded or spherical body, as of food or medicine.
2. a small wad or ball of wax, paper, etc., for throwing, shooting, or the like.
3. one of a charge of small shot, as for a shotgun.
4. a bullet.
5. a ball, usually of stone, formerly used as a missile.
6. Also called cast. Ornithology. a small, roundish mass of matter regurgitated by certain predatory birds, consisting of the indigestible remains, as the fur, feathers, and bones, of the prey.
7. (in Romanesque architecture) a hemispherical or disklike carved ornament.
8. Heraldry. ogress ².

verb (used with object)

1. to form into pellets; pelletize.
2. to hit with pellets.

pellet

/ ˈpɛlɪt /

noun

1. a small round ball, esp of compressed matter

   a wax pellet

2. 1. an imitation bullet used in toy guns
   2. a piece of small shot
3. a stone ball formerly used as a catapult or cannon missile
4. Also calledcastcasting ornithol a mass of undigested food, including bones, fur, feathers, etc, that is regurgitated by certain birds, esp birds of prey
5. a small pill
6. a raised area on coins and carved or moulded ornaments

verb

1. to strike with pellets
2. to make or form into pellets

Other Words From

• pellet·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pellet¹

1325–75; Middle English pelet < Middle French pelote < Vulgar Latin *pilotta, diminutive of Latin pila ball. See pill ¹, -et

Word History and Origins

Origin of pellet¹

C14: from Old French pelote, from Vulgar Latin pilota (unattested), from Latin pila ball

Example Sentences

The encampment grew to more than 150 people with tents surrounded by wooden pellets, with the university fire marshal warning that the use of wood was not advised, the House committee report said.

From Los Angeles Times

The neighbor, who declined to give her name, cited instances in which he allegedly shot her chickens with “a high-powered pellet gun.”

From Los Angeles Times

Pictures showed she had participated in protests and that she had been shot at by security forces with pellet guns.

From BBC

Smashing a fuel pellet with lasers falls under the category of inertial confinement fusion.

From BBC

We were sleeping, and he had decided to go to purchase a high-powered pellet gun.

From BBC

Related Words

• bullet
• pill