pelt

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈpelt 

1

: a usually undressed skin with its hair, wool, or fur

a sheep's pelt

2

: a skin stripped of hair or wool for tanning

pelt

2 of 4

verb (1)

pelted; pelting; pelts

transitive verb

: to strip off the skin or pelt of (an animal)

pelt

3 of 4

verb (2)

pelted; pelting; pelts

transitive verb

1

a

: to strike with a succession of blows or missiles

pelted him with stones

b

: to assail vigorously or persistently

pelted her with accusations

2

: hurl, throw

pelted snowballs at them

3

: to beat or dash repeatedly against

hailstones pelting the roof

intransitive verb

1

: to deliver a succession of blows or missiles

2

: to beat incessantly

3

: to move rapidly and vigorously : hurry

pelter noun

pelt

4 of 4

noun (2)

1

: blow, whack

2

chiefly British : a rapid pace : speed

—usually used in the phrase full pelt

A friend still has the three lines up his legs where he ran full pelt into a barbed wire fence.

—John Woodhouse

Synonyms of pelt

Noun (1)

• fur
• leather
• hide
• beaver
• seal
• sheep

Verb (2)

• scurry
• race
• rush
• hurry
• speed
• fly
• trot
• chase
• drive
• travel
• zip
• jump
• run
• dart
• blow
• scuttle
• scoot
• tear
• ram
• hare
• rip
• hurl
• dash

Noun (2)

• blow
• thump
• slap
• pound
• punch
• thud
• hit
• swipe
• whack
• knock
• stroke
• poke
• lick
• smack
• bang
• beat
• spank
• slam

Examples of pelt in a Sentence

Noun (1)

caught beavers and sold the pelts to fur traders

Verb (2)

pelted away when the cops arrived

pelted snowballs at each other while waiting for the bus

pelted the other kids with pebbles

Noun (2)

gave the dog a sharp pelt on the nose with her rolled up newspaper

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

River otters were hunted by the thousands for their pelts in the 17th and 18th centuries, according to the Sacramento Zoo’s page about the animal. — Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2026

After roughly 30 years, animal pelts can lose moisture and become brittle, meaning a coat that looks perfectly fine on the rack may begin to tear at stress points or shed once worn regularly. — Rachel Silva, Martha Stewart, 14 Aug. 2026

Verb

In Hackensack, heavy rain pelted cars traveling along River Road, which almost looked like a ride at a water park. — Matthew Villafane, CBS News, 7 Aug. 2026

The episode feinted toward genuine rapprochement before yanking the rug out, leaving the Gang pelted with an industrial-grade indoor blizzard and then happily chucking rocks at passing trains, as was Mac and Charlie’s childhood tradition. — Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 28 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1) and Verb (1)

Middle English, probably from pelett animal skin, from Anglo-French pelette — more at peltry

Verb (2)

Middle English

First Known Use

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (1)

1568, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun (2)

circa 1540, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for pelt

• belt
• celt
• dealt
• dwelt
• felt
• knelt
• melt
• smelt
• spelt
• veldt
• welt
• heartfelt

Kids Definition

pelt

1 of 2 noun

ˈpelt 

: a usually unfinished skin with its hair, wool, or fur

pelt

2 of 2 verb

1

: to strike with a series of blows, missiles, or words

2

: hurl sense 1, throw

3

: to beat against again and again

4

: to move quickly

Etymology

Noun

Middle English pelt "skin and attached fur of an animal"

Verb

Middle English pelten "to hit with a series of blows, pelt"