pillion

American  

[pil-yuhn] / ˈpɪl yən /

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.

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

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pillion British  

/ ˈpɪljən /

noun

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

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adverb

1. on a pillion

   to ride pillion

Etymology

Origin of pillion

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

Example Sentences

She had a bike when she left school and had been pillion on her husband John's bike for 10 years, travelling to places including Ireland and Wales, but she never got her own full licence.

From BBC • Sep. 25, 2022

Riding pillion on a neighbour’s motorcycle for 40 minutes through hillsides dotted with paddy fields, the 34-year-old health worker headed for the Mathalput Community Health Centre.

From Reuters • Jan. 25, 2021

As the convoy left the hospital it was chased by two motorcycle film crews, with one cameraman standing on the pillion seat.

From New York Times • Aug. 30, 2017

A somewhat less comfortable pillion seat is hidden beneath the rear cowl, with slender fold-down passenger pegs available along with an integrated grab bar.

From Forbes • Jul. 1, 2015

“Fetch out my pillion, fetch out my cloak, You’ll heal my heart if my bowl you broke.”

From Tales from Blackwood, Volume 7 by Willis, Herbert