fillet

American  

[fil-it, fi-ley] / ˈfɪl ɪt, fɪˈleɪ /

noun

1. Cooking.

   1. a boneless cut or slice of meat or fish, especially the beef tenderloin.

   2. a piece of veal or other meat boned, rolled, and tied for roasting.

2. a narrow band of ribbon or the like worn around the head, usually as an ornament; headband.

3. any narrow strip, as wood or metal.

4. a strip of any material used for binding.

5. Bookbinding.

   1. a decorative line impressed on a book cover, usually at the top and bottom of the back.

   2. a rolling tool for impressing such lines.

6. Architecture.

   1. Also called list.  a narrow flat molding or area, raised or sunk between larger moldings or areas.

   2. a narrow portion of the surface of a column left between adjoining flutes.

7. Anatomy. lemniscus.

8. a raised rim or ridge, as a ring on the muzzle of a gun.

9. Metallurgy. a concave strip forming a rounded interior angle in a foundry pattern.

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verb (used with object)

1. Cooking.

   1. to cut or prepare (meat or fish) as a fillet.

   2. to cut fillets from.

2. to bind or adorn with or as if with a fillet.

3. Machinery. to round off (an interior angle) with a fillet.

fillet British  

/ ˈfɪlɪt /

noun

1. 1. Also called: fillet steak.  a strip of boneless meat, esp the undercut of a sirloin of beef

   2. the boned side of a fish

   3. the white meat of breast and wing of a chicken

2. a narrow strip of any material

3. a thin strip of ribbon, lace, etc, worn in the hair or around the neck

4. a narrow flat moulding, esp one between other mouldings

5. a narrow band between two adjacent flutings on the shaft of a column

6. Also called: fillet weld.  a narrow strip of welded metal of approximately triangular cross-section used to join steel members at right angles

7. heraldry a horizontal division of a shield, one quarter of the depth of the chief

8. Also called: listel.   list.  the top member of a cornice

9. Technical name: lemniscus.  anatomy a band of sensory nerve fibres in the brain connected to the thalamus

10. 1. a narrow decorative line, impressed on the cover of a book

    2. a wheel tool used to impress such lines

11. another name for fairing 1

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verb

1. to cut or prepare (meat or fish) as a fillet

2. to cut fillets from (meat or fish)

3. anatomy to surgically remove a bone from (part of the body) so that only soft tissue remains

4. to bind or decorate with or as if with a fillet

Etymology

Origin of fillet

1300–50; Middle English filet < Anglo-French, Middle French, equivalent to fil thread + -et -et

Example Sentences

Make sure to buy two fish so everyone gets a fillet.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 15, 2026

The dish - usually prepared with a long strip of fillet steak, wrapped in pastry and mushrooms - was something Ms Patterson's mother made when she was a child, to mark special occasions, she said.

From BBC • Jun. 4, 2025

One of my favorite things is shark and bake, which is a fried fillet of shark served in a piece of fry bread with a variety of condiments like chandon beni sauce and pepper sauce.

From Salon • Sep. 30, 2024

They found a decrease in six out of nine nutrients in the salmon fillet -- calcium, iodine, iron, omega-3, vitamin B12 and vitamin A, but increased levels of selenium and zinc.

From Science Daily • Mar. 20, 2024

Zafoona rolled back the tinfoil and eyed the fillet of fish lying on a small pile of yellow rice.

From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai

Related Words

• fish
• meat
• slice