Spelling of pillow: pillow is spelled p-i-l-l-o-w. Pillow is always spelled with two L’s, even in its verb and adjective forms.
Definition of pillow: A pillow is a cloth case stuffed with something soft, such as down, feathers, or foam rubber, used to cushion a part of the body, especially the head during sleep.
Pronunciation of pillow: pillow is pronounced pih-lo.
How to Use Pillow in a Sentence
What does pillow mean? In most everyday cases of the word, pillow is used as a noun. A pillow is a cloth bag stuffed with foam, feathers, or other soft materials that people use to aid them while sleeping.
- I prefer firm pillow to soft pillows.
- My bed has many throw pillows that are only used for decoration.
Pillow can also be used as a verb where it means serve as a pillow for.
For example,
- The soft, thick grass pillowed my head in the park.
Pillow as a verb is comparatively infrequent to pillow as a noun.
Phrases That Use Pillow
There are a few common terms and phrases that contain the word pillow.
Pillow Fight: A mock fight in which people hit each other with pillows.
Pillow Talk: Intimate conversation in bed.
Cry Into Your Pillow: Literal meaning; implies someone who is acting childish.
- Go cry into your pillow or stop being a baby.
Cry Pillow: A cry pillow is someone to which someone else unloads his or her emotional baggage. This is related to cry into your pillow.
- I couldn’t get him to go away. He was treating me like his cry pillow.
History of Pillow
Pillow came from Middle English: pilwe. Merriam-Webster puts its first use in English at sometime before the 12th century.
The Middle English word pilwe came from the Old English words pyle, pylu, pylw-, which are related to the Dutch peluw and the West Germanic pulwī, which ultimately came from the Latin word pulvīnus, meaning cushion.
Synonyms of Pillow
Since pillow is a specific item, it doesn’t have as many synonyms as other words.
However, there are a few words that can be roughly substituted for pillow:
Pillow as a Noun:
- Cushion
- Bolster
- Pad
- Headrest
Pillow as a Verb:
- Cushion
- Cradle
- Lay
- Rest
- Support
Outside Examples of Pillow
- JetBlue Airways said Monday that it planned to begin charging for pillow and blanket sets on flights of two hours or longer. –The New York Times
- If your pillow is older than three years and has not been washed during that time, it weighs more now than when you bought it. –The Washington Post
Summary
Pillow is usually used as a noun but can also function as a verb.
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