pledget

American  

[plej-it] / ˈplɛdʒ ɪt /

noun

1. a small, flat mass of lint, absorbent cotton, or the like, for use on a wound, sore, etc.

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pledget British  

/ ˈplɛdʒɪt /

noun

1. a small flattened pad of wool, cotton, etc, esp for use as a pressure bandage to be applied to wounds or sores

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Etymology

Origin of pledget

First recorded in 1530–40; origin uncertain

Example Sentences

A piece of cloth is rolled up in a pledget of the size of a shilling, steeped in oil, placed on the part selected by the doctor, and set alight.

From Among the Wild Tribes of the Afghan Frontier A Record of Sixteen Years' Close Intercourse with the Natives of the Indian Marches by Pennell, T. L. (Theodore Leighton)

Finally a pledget of dry cotton should be loosely packed into the ear passage, and worn by the patient for twelve or twenty-four hours.

From The Home Medical Library, Volume II (of VI) by Winslow, Kenelm

When the intestinal wound is found to be healed, the entire pledget is to be removed and the unhealed openings dressed as in other simple wounds.

From Gilbertus Anglicus Medicine of the Thirteenth Century by Handerson, Henry Ebenezer

A pledget of tow, saturated with tar and sprinkled with powdered sulphate of copper, should be inserted between the claws.

From Cattle and Their Diseases Embracing Their History and Breeds, Crossing and Breeding, And Feeding and Management; With the Diseases to which They are Subject, And The Remedies Best Adapted to their Cure by Jennings, Robert

The operation effected, we cover up the wound with a pledget of lint, kept in its place by three or four threads passed through the stitches, and all is completed.

From The American Reformed Cattle Doctor by Dadd, George