Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

1

purl

play
noun \ˈpər(-ə)l\

Definition of purl

  1. 1 :  gold or silver thread or wire for embroidering or edging

  2. 2 :  the intertwisting of thread that knots a stitch usually along an edge

  3. 3 :  purl stitch

From the M-W Editors

knit-fast-die-warm-intarsia-photo
A Ravel of Knitting Words
alt-59760690a61d7
Trending: Trump Tweets, We Define: 'Beleaguered'
alt-596f95fe451e7
'Drought' & 'Drouth' Take Us Back In Time
video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Origin and Etymology of purl

Middle English

2

purl

verb

Definition of purl

  1. transitive verb

  2. 1a :  to embroider with gold or silver threadb :  to edge or border with gold or silver embroidery

  3. 2 :  to knit in purl stitch

  4. intransitive verb

  5. :  to do knitting in purl stitch

First Known Use of purl

1518

3

purl

noun

Definition of purl

  1. 1 :  a purling or swirling stream or rill

  2. 2 :  a gentle murmur or movement (as of purling water)

Origin and Etymology of purl

perhaps of Scandinavian origin; akin to Norwegian purla to ripple

4

purl

verb

Definition of purl

  1. intransitive verb

  2. 1 :  eddy, swirl

  3. 2 :  to make a soft murmuring sound like that of a purling stream

First Known Use of purl

circa 1586

Learn More about purl

  1. Spanish Central: Translation of purl Nglish: Translation of purl for Spanish speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up purl? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

haphazard

play

marked by lack of plan or order

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. beleaguer 'Being subjected to constant or repeated trouble or harassment'

  2. scaramouch A new White House communications director

  3. non sequitur “It does not follow”

  4. admiral's mast A massive search ends with an 'admiral's mast'.

  5. calumny 'An untrue statement that is made to damage someone's reputation'

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

purl

Test Your Vocabulary

The Emoji Quiz

  • emoji-the-quiz
  • What phase of the moon is this: 🌖 ?
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Dictionary Devil

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-596f95fe451e7
'Drought' & 'Drouth' Take Us Back In Time

A variant spelling with a long history

alt-59721dd897313
The 'Best' Way to Sign Off On An E-mail

Give them your best

image386126722
Words and Phrases That Come from the Dinner Table

Fill your plate with these surprising food words

ghost-being-disinvited-from-party
'Disinvite' or 'Uninvite'?

A disinvited guest is an uninvited problem

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

emoji-the-quiz
The Emoji Quiz

Think you’re an emoji 👓 expert? Let’s see 🤔

Take the quiz
image941935269
A Game of Thrones Word Quiz

In the Game of Thrones quiz, you learn some new vocabulary. (It’s quite safe, really. You will not die.)

Take the quiz
Spell It
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Take the quiz
Dictionary Devil
Dictionary Devil

The dictionary has been scrambled—can you put it back together?

Play the game