pellet

noun

pel·let | \ ˈpe-lət

Definition of pellet

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : a usually small rounded, spherical, or cylindrical body (as of food or medicine)

b : a wad of indigestible material (as of bones and fur) regurgitated by a bird of prey

2 : any of various projectiles fired from a weapon (such as an air rifle)

pellet

verb

pelleted; pelleting; pellets

Definition of pellet (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : pelletize

2 : to strike with pellets

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Examples of pellet in a Sentence

Noun

the tightly packed pellets of a shotgun cartridge

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Fortunately for Gina Haspel, the former vice-president struck her with words rather than shotgun pellets. — Ed Kilgore, Daily Intelligencer, "Cheney Endorses Haspel and a Return to Torture," 10 May 2018 At least 90 people, mostly young men and students, were killed and thousands wounded, hundreds of them in the eyes and blinded by shotgun pellets fired by Indian troops. — Fox News, "Strike, curfew shuts Kashmir on rebel's death anniversary," 8 July 2018 The plastic, which comes from Haiti, is gathered and turned into pellets that can be used for various products. — Florence Fabricant, The Seattle Times, "8 great kitchen tools you didn’t know you needed," 29 Aug. 2018 According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ricin is found naturally in castor beans, and can be extracted to make a powder, mist or pellet containing the concentrated poison. — Nancy A. Youssef, WSJ, "Letters to Pentagon Held Castor Seeds, Not Ricin; Utah Man Is Held," 3 Oct. 2018 But innovations from the Oak Ridge National Lab (ORNL) have automated its creation allowing for more than double the plutonium-238 pellets made per week. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Scientists Find a New Way To Create the Plutonium That Powers Deep Space Missions," 8 Jan. 2019 After being quality checked, the pellets are heated and molded into test-tube shapes. — Saabira Chaudhuri, WSJ, "Plastic Water Bottles, Which Enabled a Drinks Boom, Now Threaten a Crisis," 12 Dec. 2018 Greens quickly were covered by the tiny white pellets, and workers went from using squeegees for excess water to power blowers to remove the hail. — Doug Ferguson, The Seattle Times, "Mickelson beats everyone but the dark at Pebble," 11 Feb. 2019 The fuel is made out of hollow metal rods packed with uranium pellets. — Rachel Becker, The Verge, "Have nuclear fuel transportation cask, will travel," 3 Aug. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Spread a light layer of compost or pelleted seed establishment mulch over the new seed to help keep it moist. — Tim Johnson, chicagotribune.com, "Lawn thinning out beneath a cluster of trees? Too much shade could be wreaking havoc," 10 July 2018 Snow pellets form when supercooled water droplets are collected and freeze on falling snowflakes. — Meg Jones, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Light snow showers and snow pellets possible today in southeastern Wisconsin," 21 Dec. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pellet.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

8 Jun 2019

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Time Traveler for pellet

The first known use of pellet was in the 14th century

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More Definitions for pellet

pellet

noun

English Language Learners Definition of pellet

: a small, hard ball of food, medicine, etc.

: a small metal object that is shot from a gun

See the full definition for pellet in the English Language Learners Dictionary

pellet

noun

pel·let | \ ˈpe-lət

Kids Definition of pellet

1 : a little ball (as of food or medicine)

2 : a piece of small shot

3 : a wad of material (as bones and fur) that cannot be digested and has been thrown up by a bird of prey (as an owl)

pellet

noun

pel·let | \ ˈpel-ət

Medical Definition of pellet

: a usually small rounded or spherical body specifically : a small cylindrical or ovoid compressed mass (as of a hormone) that is implanted subcutaneously for slow absorption into bodily tissues