pilon

American  

[pee-lohn] / piˈloʊn /

noun

Southwestern U.S. (chiefly Texas).

1. something extra; lagniappe.

---

Usage

What does pilon mean? Pilon is an informal regional term that means a little something extra—a bonus. It’s primarily used in Texas and some parts of the Southwestern U. S. Pilon typically refers to something additional given to a customer for free when they’re making a purchase. This is often done as a nice gesture on the part of the seller, kind of like when you get 13 items for the prize of 12 in a “baker’s dozen.”The regional term lagniappe is used to mean about the same thing in Southern Louisiana and Southeast Texas. Example: The fruit vendor at the farmer’s market said he’d throw in a carton of strawberries as a pilon since I’m such a loyal customer.

Etymology

Origin of pilon

1880–85; < Mexican Spanish pilón literally, trough, mortar, Spanish: derivative of pila basin, trough < Latin pīla mortar

Example Sentences

Then she adds the coffee she has dried, winnowed, roasted and pounded into powder with a large mortar called a pilon, the way she was taught as a child.

From New York Times • May 20, 2022

He suffered a pilon fracture, and the two lower leg bones were crumpled together.

From Washington Times • Apr. 12, 2017

A large Silver Fox in the Jewish section of Oakwoods Cemetary on 63rd St. Best of all--a Great Snowy Owl that perched on a pilon of that same Ogden Slip for a full day.

From New York Times • Oct. 27, 2016

A gray stoneware pilon coffeepot grunted on the back of the stove.

From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck

Caton met aussi la pile et le pilon, au nombre des meubles rustiques de son temps.

From The Conquest of Canada (Vol. 1 of 2) by Warburton, George