as in bullets
a usually round or cone-shaped little piece of lead made to be fired from a firearm
the tightly packed pellets of a shotgun cartridge
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pellets
Nicola Twilley, New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2026
Ice melt contains salt pellets that help melt ice on driveways and sidewalks.
—Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 4 Jan. 2026
Human adipose tissue is processed into small pellets and cultured in suspension, allowing cells to reorganize and differentiate without extensive manipulation.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 1 Jan. 2026
The oven runs on natural wood chips, pellets or lump charcoal, with a single load providing around 20 minutes of consistent burn.
—Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 31 Dec. 2025
Particularly troubling is that some women are receiving those higher doses via pellets — typically purchased from compounding pharmacies that may or may not be reliable.
—Lisa Jarvis, Twin Cities, 25 Dec. 2025
Light wintry mix and rain Tuesday morning Radar may look messy start Tuesday morning is likely with pockets of wet snow flakes, sleet pellets, and rain drops expected to move through.
—Rachael Jay, CBS News, 22 Dec. 2025
The No-Burn rule bans burning wood, pellets, and manufactured fire logs in any indoor or outdoor wood-burning device.
—Ca Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 21 Dec. 2025
When an autopsy found lead pellets in his face, the sheriff said these might be dental fillings.
—Equal Justice Initiative, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
Noun
Finally, with the samples stashed safely in an ice chest, Collins opened the grills, blowtorched some pellets inside, and watched as the smoke got going.
—Nicola Twilley, New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2026
Ice melt contains salt pellets that help melt ice on driveways and sidewalks.
—Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 4 Jan. 2026
Human adipose tissue is processed into small pellets and cultured in suspension, allowing cells to reorganize and differentiate without extensive manipulation.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 1 Jan. 2026
The oven runs on natural wood chips, pellets or lump charcoal, with a single load providing around 20 minutes of consistent burn.
—Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 31 Dec. 2025
Particularly troubling is that some women are receiving those higher doses via pellets — typically purchased from compounding pharmacies that may or may not be reliable.
—Lisa Jarvis, Twin Cities, 25 Dec. 2025
Light wintry mix and rain Tuesday morning Radar may look messy start Tuesday morning is likely with pockets of wet snow flakes, sleet pellets, and rain drops expected to move through.
—Rachael Jay, CBS News, 22 Dec. 2025
The No-Burn rule bans burning wood, pellets, and manufactured fire logs in any indoor or outdoor wood-burning device.
—Ca Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 21 Dec. 2025
When an autopsy found lead pellets in his face, the sheriff said these might be dental fillings.
—Equal Justice Initiative, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pellets
Noun
-
After Goetz shot Ramseur, two bullets remained in the gun.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Jan. 2026
-
These munitions are much larger than lead bullets, and some include cores made of metal or wood covered by foam or rubber.—
Graham Hurley,
CNN Money,
20 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Rebuilding efforts can also be delayed by the bounces of lottery balls, a bust pick, organizational impatience, a key devastating injury and the like.—
Thomas Drance,
New York Times,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Federal agents have launched less lethal munitions, including pepper balls, tear gas, pepper spray, and flashbangs at protesters, according to CNN.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
However, sometimes the abnormal IgA (the antibody that clumps up and causes problems) does run in families.—
Brandi Jones,
Health,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Cocoa powder often clumps in its container.—
Erin Merhar,
Southern Living,
11 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Advertisement Breaking it down Artificial intelligence is an umbrella-term for several different technologies, from autonomous vehicles to chatbots—and the database lumps these together without a comprehensive structure.—
Harry Booth,
Time,
19 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pellets.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pellets. Accessed 22 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
