quill

American  

[kwil] / kwɪl /

noun

1. one of the large feathers of the wing or tail of a bird.

2. the hard, hollow, basal part of a feather.

3. a feather, as of a goose, formed into a pen for writing.

4. one of the hollow spines on a porcupine or hedgehog.

5. a plectrum of a harpsichord.

6. a roll of bark, as of cinnamon, formed in drying.

7. a reed or other hollow stem on which yarn is wound.

8. a bobbin or spool.

9. a toothpick.

10. Machinery.

    1. a hollow shaft or sleeve through which another independently rotating shaft may pass.

    2. a shaft, joined to and supported by two other shafts or machines, for transmitting motion from one to the other.

    3. a rotating toolholder used in boring or facing internal angles.

11. a musical pipe, especially one made from a hollow reed.

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verb (used with object)

1. Textiles.

   1. to arrange (fabric) in flutes or cylindrical ridges, as along the edge of a garment, hem, etc.

   2. to wind on a quill, as yarn.

2. to penetrate with, or as if with, a quill or quills.

3. to extract a quill or quills from.

   to quill a duck before cooking it.

quill British  

/ kwɪl /

noun

1. 1. any of the large stiff feathers of the wing or tail of a bird

   2. the long hollow central part of a bird's feather; calamus

2. a bird's feather made into a pen for writing

3. any of the stiff hollow spines of a porcupine or hedgehog

4. a device, formerly usually made from a crow quill, for plucking a harpsichord string

5. angling a length of feather barb stripped of barbules and used for the body of some artificial flies

6. a small roll of bark, esp one of dried cinnamon

7. (in weaving) a bobbin or spindle

8. a fluted fold, as in a ruff

9. a hollow shaft that rotates upon an inner spindle or concentrically about an internal shaft

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verb

1. to wind (thread, yarn, etc) onto a spool or bobbin

2. to make or press fluted folds in (a ruff)

quill Scientific  

/ kwĭl /

1. The hollow shaft of a feather, the bottom of which attaches to the bird's skin.

2. One of the sharp hollow spines of a porcupine or hedgehog.

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Other Word Forms

• quill-like adjective

Etymology

Origin of quill

1375–1425; late Middle English quil; compare Low German quiele, German Kiel

Example Sentences

He must save it all for his quill.

From Los Angeles Times

Each one is hand-plucked, which means you may spot a few black quills here and there; the company insists they’re harmless, and they disappear once cooked.

From Salon

How did the shabby offices of the late 1700s, with their dim lights, coal-burning fireplaces and quill pens, evolve into the sleek, high-tech work environments that we know today?

From The Wall Street Journal

Amid the fresh scholarship of recent years—the microanalysis of quill strokes, the algorithmic scrutiny of syntax—Mr. Swift’s contribution, and it’s a valuable one, is to tell the story of a building.

From The Wall Street Journal

The set list mixed new songs with old favorites: “Bloody Mary” into “Abracadabra” into “Judas” into the German-language “Sheiße,” which involved a bunch of oversize quill pens and a Last Supper-style tableau.

From Los Angeles Times