pig iron
1048
'pig ,iron n [U] an impure form of iron obtained directly from
a BLAST FURNACE
pig·let /'pɪglət/ n a young pig
Piglet a character in the stories about WINNIE THE POOH by
A.A. MILNE. He is a small pig who walks on two legs and has
no tail, and he is a friend of Winnie the Pooh.
pig·ment /'pɪgmənt/ n 1 [C,U] (a) dry coloured powder that
is mixed with oil, water etc, to make paint 2 [U] natural
colouring matter of plants and animals, such as in leaves,
hair, skin etc
pig·men·ta·tion /ˌpɪgmən'teɪʃən/ n [U] 1 the spreading of
colouring matter in parts of living things 2 the colouring of
living things
pig·my /'pɪgmi/ n a PYGMY
pig·pen /'pɪgpen/ n AmE for PIGSTY
Pigpen a character in the US CARTOON STRIP called Peanuts,
who is very dirty and always has a cloud of dirt all around
him
Pigs, Bay of → see BAY OF PIGS
pig·skin /'pɪgˌskɪn/ n [U] leather made from pig's skin: a
pigskin bag
pig's 'trotters n [P] pigs' feet, cooked and eaten as food
pig·sty /'pɪgstaɪ/ also pigpen especially AmE — n 1 also sty —
an enclosure with a small building in it, where pigs are
kept 2 derog a very dirty room or house, especially that is
also in bad repair: How can you live in this pigsty?
pig·swill /'pɪgˌswɪl/ n [U] 1 waste food, such as vegetable
skins, given to pigs 2 derog tasteless or bad-tasting food
pig·tail /'pɪgteɪl/ n 1 one of two bunches of hair worn on
either side of the face, either plaited (PLAIT) or loose, espe-
cially by young girls: a little girl with her hair in pig-
tails. 2 BrE || braid AmE — a length of hair that has been
twisted together in a short PLAIT and hangs down the back
of the neck and shoulders, especially worn by young girls →
compare PONYTAIL →—ed adj
pike¹ /paɪk/ n; pl. pikes or pike a large fish-eating fish that
lives in rivers and lakes
pike² n a long-handled spear formerly used by soldiers
fighting on foot →—man /mən/ n
pike³ n a TURNPIKE
Pike, Zeb·u·lon /'zebjuːlən/ (1779–1813) a US army GENERAL
and EXPLORER who travelled through Louisiana and along
the Mississippi River. Pike's Peak is named after him.
Pike's 'Peak one of the ROCKY MOUNTAINS in the US state of
Colorado
pike·staff /'paɪkstɑːfɪl-stæf/ n the long wooden handle of a
PIKE → see also asplain as a pikestaff (PLAIN)
pi·laf, pilaff /'piːlæfɪl'pɪlɑːf/ also pi·lau /'piːlaʊɪl'piːlaʊ/ n
[C,U] (often in comb.) a dish made from rice and sometimes
vegetables, and often served with meat: chicken pilaf
pi·las·ter /pɪ'læstər/ n a square post that usually sticks out
only partly beyond the wall of a building and is usually only
decorative
Pi·late, Pon·tius /'paɪlət, 'pɒnʃəs, 'pɒntiəsɪl'paːntiəs/
(1st century AD) the Roman governor of Judaea, a former
country in the area that is now Palestine, at the time when
Jesus Christ was judged and killed. According to the New
Testament of the Bible, Pilate offered to let Jesus go free, but
the local leaders would not accept this. Pilate then washed
his hands and said he was not to blame for Jesus's death.
People mention Pilate, or talk about someone 'washing their
hands of' a problem, when they are talking about someone
who is not morally strong enough to do what they think is
right.
Pi·la·tes /prɪ'lɑːtiːz/ n [U] an exercise method developed by
Joseph and Clara Pilates in the 1920s. It was used by dancers
and GYMNASTS for many years, and became very popular
with the public in the 1990s. The exercises are done in a
very slow and controlled way.
pil·chard /'pɪltʃɑːdɪl-ərd/ n a small sea fish like the HERRING,
often preserved in tins as food
pile¹ /paɪl/ n 1 [(of)] a tidy collection of objects, especially
when made of a number of things of the same kind placed
on top of each other: a pile of books/plates | We put the
newspapers in piles on the floor. → see USAGE 2 a
PYRE 3 [(of)] also piles pl. — infml a lot: I've got piles of work to
do today. 4 [C usually sing.] infml a very large amount of money;
fortune: He made a/his pile and retired to the Baha-
mas. 5 pomp a large tall building or group of buildings: They
live in a rambling Victorian pile. → see also PILES, ATOMIC
PILE
USAGE Compare pile, stack and heap which can all mean
'a mass of things placed one on top of the other'. A pile
is a usually tidy collection of objects, usually of the same
kind: a pile of books/papers/leaves. A stack is a carefully
arranged pile usually made up of a lot of things of the
same shape and size: a stack of books/coins/cassettes.
A heap is a large disorderly pile of things, not necessarily
of the same kind: a heap of toys/books/dirty washing.
Both pile and heap can also be used with uncountable
nouns: a pile/heap of sand/straw/manure.
pile² v 1 [T(on, up)] to make a pile of: He piled the boxes one on
top of the other. | The little boy was piling up his building
blocks. 2 [T(onto, with)] to fill or cover plentifully; load: He
piled the spaghetti onto his plate. | The cart was piled high
with fruit and vegetables. 3 [I+adv/prep] infml (of people) to
come or go in (a disorderly) crowd: He opened the doors and
they all piled in. | The boat arrived and hordes of children
piled off.
pile on phr v infml 1 pile it on to say too much; EXAGGERATE:
She was trying to impress the interviewer, so she really piled it
on. | Giving someone a compliment is one thing, but you were
piling it on! 2 pile on the agony to enjoy making some-
thing seem worse than it really is
pile up phr v [I] 1 to form into a mass or large quantity;
ACCUMULATE: My work is piling up. | The clouds are piling
up. 2 (of a number of vehicles) to crash into each other →
see also PILEUP
pile³ n [C,U] the soft surface of short threads on CARPETS and
some cloths, especially VELVET: a deep pile carpet → compare
NAP
pile⁴ n a heavy wooden, metal, or CONCRETE post hammered
upright into the ground as a support for a building, bridge
etc
'pile ,driver n 1 a machine for hammering PILES into the
ground 2 infml a very hard blow (PUNCH), especially in BOXING
piles /paɪlz/ n [P] infml for HAEMORRHOIDS. Piles are often
treated by non-sufferers as a rather humorous complaint.
pile·up /'paɪlʌp/ n infml a traffic accident in which a number
of vehicles crash into each other: a bad pileup on the
motorway → see also PILE up
pil·fer /'pɪlfər/ v [i,T] to steal (small amounts or things of
little value): He was found pilfering from other children's
desks. | Petty pilfering is on the increase in department stores.
→—er n
pil·grim /'pɪlgrɪm/ n a person who travels especially a long
way to a holy place as an act of religious love and respect
pil·grim·age /'pɪlgrɪmɪdʒ/ n [C,U (to)] (a) journey made by a
pilgrim: Aziz is planning to go on/make a pilgrimage to
Mecca. | (fig.) Many music-lovers make pilgrimages to Mozart's
birthplace.
Pilgrim 'Fathers, the also the Pilgrims a group of
English PURITANS who sailed to N America in the Mayflower
to escape from England and establish a new type of society
where they could be free to practise their religion. They
arrived at Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620. → compare
FOUNDING FATHER; see picture on page A48
Pilgrim's 'Progress, The (1678–84) a book by John BUN-
YAN. It is an ALLEGORY of the difficult journey of the human
soul through life to Heaven. The main character, CHRISTIAN,
leaves his family and travels through places such as the
SLOUGH OF DESPOND and VANITY FAIR, facing many dangers
on his way.
Pilgrim's 'Way the name of an old path from WINCHESTER
to CANTERBURY in southern England, which PILGRIMS trav-
elled along in the past
pill¹ /pɪl/ n 1 [C] a small solid piece of medicine, made to be
swallowed whole: to take (=swallow) a sleeping pill → see
also MORNING-AFTER PILL, a bitter pill (to swallow) (BITTER),
sugar the pill (SUGAR) 2 [the S] (often cap.) a pill taken
regularly, usually every day, by women as a means of birth