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billet

1
[ bil-it ]
/ ˈbɪl ɪt /
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See synonyms for: billet / billeted / billeting on Thesaurus.com

noun
verb (used with object), bil·let·ed, bil·let·ing.
Military. to direct (a soldier) by ticket, note, or verbal order, where to lodge.
to provide lodging for; quarter: We arranged with the townspeople to billet the students.
verb (used without object), bil·let·ed, bil·let·ing.
to obtain lodging; stay: They billeted in youth hostels.
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Origin of billet

1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English billet, bylet “official register; record,” from Anglo-French, Old French billette, variant of Old French bullette, equivalent to bulle bill1 + -ette -ette

OTHER WORDS FROM billet

bil·let·er, nounun·bil·let·ed, adjective

Other definitions for billet (2 of 2)

billet2
[ bil-it ]
/ ˈbɪl ɪt /

noun

Origin of billet

2
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English billet, bylet, from Old French billette, equivalent to bille “log, tree trunk” (from unrecorded Gaulish bilia “tree trunk”; compare Old Irish bile “landmark tree”) + -ette -ette
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use billet in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for billet (1 of 2)

billet1
/ (ˈbɪlɪt) /

noun
verb -lets, -leting or -leted

Derived forms of billet

billetee, nounbilleter, noun

Word Origin for billet

C15: from Old French billette, from bulle a document; see bull ³

British Dictionary definitions for billet (2 of 2)

billet2
/ (ˈbɪlɪt) /

noun
a chunk of wood, esp for fuel
metallurgy
  1. a metal bar of square or circular cross section
  2. an ingot cast into the shape of a prism
architect a carved ornament in a moulding, with short cylinders or blocks evenly spaced

Word Origin for billet

C15: from Old French billette a little log, from bille log, probably of Celtic origin
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
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