pillion

[ pil-yuhn ]
See synonyms for pillion on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a pad or cushion attached behind a saddle, especially as a seat for a woman.

  2. a pad, cushion, saddle, or the like, used as a passenger seat on a bicycle, motor scooter, etc.

  1. a passenger's saddle or seat behind the driver's seat on a motorcycle.

Origin of pillion

1
1495–1505; <Scots Gaelic pillinn or Irish pillín, diminutive of peall skin, rug blanket, MIr pell<Latin pellis skin

Words Nearby pillion

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use pillion in a sentence

  • The saddle of Maitre Perrot had a pillion attached behind for a lady, but this was at present untenanted.

    The Cornet of Horse | G. A. Henty
  • "An officer and eight men," he whispered to Rupert as he leapt into the saddle, while Rupert lifted Adele on to the pillion.

    The Cornet of Horse | G. A. Henty
  • Clem had met her in Jackson with his nag, and she was riding, mountain-fashion, on a pillion behind him.

    The Code of the Mountains | Charles Neville Buck
  • Young Mr. Beall carried his bride on a pillion behind him, her red riding-cloak flung over her ball dress.

    Richard Carvel, Complete | Winston Churchill
  • But it was long before it began to supplant the post-horses and the feminine pillion.

British Dictionary definitions for pillion

pillion

/ (ˈpɪljən) /


noun
  1. a seat or place behind the rider of a motorcycle, scooter, horse, etc

adverb
  1. on a pillion: to ride pillion

Origin of pillion

1
C16: from Gaelic; compare Scottish pillean, Irish pillīn couch; related to Latin pellis skin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012