pillow
Americannoun
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pillows
plural
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a bag or case made of cloth that is filled with feathers, down, or other soft material, and is used to cushion the head during sleep or rest.
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anything used to cushion the head; headrest.
a pillow of moss.
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Also called lace pillow. a hard cushion or pad that supports the pattern and threads in the making of bobbin lace.
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a supporting piece or part, as the block on which the inner end of a bowsprit rests.
verb (used with object)
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pillows,
present (3rd person singular)
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pillowed,
past participle, past
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pillowing
present participle
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to rest on or as on a pillow.
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to support with pillows.
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to serve as a pillow for.
She pillowed the child with her body.
verb (used without object)
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pillows,
present (3rd person singular)
-
pillowed,
past participle, past
-
pillowing
present participle
noun
-
a cloth case stuffed with feathers, foam rubber, etc, used to support the head, esp during sleep
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Also called: cushion. a padded cushion or board on which pillow lace is made
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anything like a pillow in shape or function
verb
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to rest (one's head) on or as if on a pillow
-
to serve as a pillow for
Synonym Usage
See cushion.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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pillowsimple
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pillowssimple
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have pillowedperfect
-
has pillowedperfect
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am pillowingprogressive
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are pillowingprogressive
-
is pillowingprogressive
-
have been pillowingperfect progressive
-
has been pillowingperfect progressive
Past
-
pillowedsimple
-
had pillowedperfect
-
was pillowingprogressive
-
were pillowingprogressive
-
had been pillowingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pillow
before 900; Middle English pilwe, Old English pylu < Latin pulvīnus cushion (whence also German Pfühl)
Explanation
A pillow is something you rest your head on while you sleep. Or, during a slumber party, a pillow could be used as a weapon. While in some cultures people have used hard pillows made of stone or wood, it's most common today to sleep with your head on a pillow stuffed with feathers or foam. Many people also have pillows on their chairs and sofas, either as decoration or to make them more comfortable. During a "pillow fight," playful combatants hit each other with soft pillows.
Vocabulary lists containing pillow
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Plutarch claimed that Alexander slept with Aristotle’s personally annotated “Iliad” under his pillow.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Some are made with a firmer material in the lower half of the pillow, which help retain the shape during the night.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
For back sleepers, some manufacturers advertise a pillow with a dip in the middle that is raised at the sides.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
But they can change shape during the night, particularly if the sleeper moves around a lot and the pillow can end up bunched towards the headboard.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
With that I gave in and reached under my pillow.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Sales of nonfood items—throw pillows, kitchen gadgets and apparel—tend to garner higher margins and aren’t categories where Walmart already dominates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
Hundreds of others, armed with mats, tents and pillows, had done the same.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
The toppings are market-flexible, too: Use whatever chèvre or goat cheese you find, whether it crumbles into little pillows or lands in soft clouds, and turn a leftover hunk of cornbread into crisp, salty crumbs.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
Reusable ice packs, freezer blocks or cooling pillows may help some people feel more comfortable.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
I hugged Aunt Florentine’s pillows to my chest and drank in their lavender smell.
From Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles
But a new facade of pillowed concrete, along with arched skylights in the workshop areas, add touches of refinement to what is essentially a space to make artistic messes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2019
I raced through steep pine forests pillowed with heavy snow and frozen aspens, the Wasatch mountains rolling by in swirls of purple and brilliant white.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 18, 2016
Early morning, I was on a sleep cloud, tucked in on a pillowed four-poster bed, a slow ceiling fan ruffling a pinned-up muslin mosquito net.
From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2016
So, in Bright Star, Keats is not just Romantic but romantic too: head pillowed upon fair Fanny’s breast, mooning about in blue velvet tails, he essentially speaks in his own verse.
From Slate ● Apr. 26, 2012
Then out through the door and onto the beach, to lie in the cool sand, my head pillowed on my laced hands.
From "Beyond the Bright Sea" by Lauren Wolk
The musical orchestration pillowing their voices is lovely, the singing sincere.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2024
He lay back, pillowing his head on his hands.
From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
Kaede rolled over, pillowing her head on her bent arm to look at him.
From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo
I lie facedown on her bed, pillowing my head on my arms, completely drained in the aftermath of a hellish morning.
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
Kaede built the small fire as quickly as she could, and Con pulled Shae’s sleeping form toward it, pillowing her head on a rolled-up blanket.
From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
