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.

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 called: cast.  casting. 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 Word Forms

• pelletlike 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 inspections uncovered thousands of unlawfully disposed items, including pesticide containers with liquids, foams, baits, pellets and aerosol sprays.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Barbecue pellet company Bear Mountain BBQ announced Duarte’s death on Tuesday in a joint statement shared to his Instagram page.

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The fuel used in a reactor is manufactured in pellets, which are stacked into rods and held together by a thin metal shell.

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Large quantities of small plastic pellets have washed up on an East Sussex coastline causing a pollution incident, a council has said.

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In the UK, Vector Homes is preparing to sell a licence for PureGRAPH to makers of plastic pellets that could be used to make construction materials such as fascia boards.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• bullet 
• pill