pillory

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A framework on a post, with holes for the hands and head, used as a means of punishment and humiliation.
verb
  1. To put in a pillory.
  2. To subject to humiliation, scorn, ridicule or abuse.
  3. To criticize harshly.

Pronunciation

/ˈpɪləɹi/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-pillory.wav

Word forms

pillory pillories pillorying pilloried

Etymology

From Middle English pilory, pillorie, from Old French pilori, pellori, which is either from Old Occitan espilori or Latin pīla (“pillar”).

Derived words

This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.