pill
- 01 A2 Elementary
n.a small, solid piece of medicine that you swallow whole.
n.a small, typically round or cylindrical medicated mass intended to be swallowed whole.
Simple“The doctor told him to take one pill every morning with a glass of water.”
In context“The patient was prescribed a daily pill to manage his blood pressure, with strict instructions not to skip any doses.”
- 02 B1 Intermediate
n.a medicine taken by women to prevent becoming pregnant.
n.an oral contraceptive medication, typically referred to with the definite article as 'the pill'.
Simple“She went to the clinic to talk to her doctor about starting the pill.”
In context“Since the introduction of the pill in the 1960s, reproductive healthcare and social norms have shifted significantly.”
UsageUsually used with 'the' as in 'the pill'.
Synonyms - 03 C1 Advanced
n.a person who is very annoying or unpleasant to be around.
n.a person perceived as disagreeable, tedious, or socially tiresome.
Simple“Stop complaining about everything; you are being such a pill today.”
In context“Although he was a brilliant architect, his colleagues found him to be a bit of a pill during long project meetings.”
- 04 C2 Proficiency
n.a tiny ball of fibers that forms on the surface of clothes or blankets.
n.a small ball of matted fibers formed on the surface of a textile through friction or wear.
Simple“This old sweater is covered in pills and needs to be cleaned.”
In context“Low-quality synthetic blends are particularly prone to developing pills after only a few cycles in the washing machine.”
Synonymsfuzzballlint - 05 C2 Proficiency
v.when clothes get small, annoying balls of fluff on them after being worn or washed.
v.to form small matted balls of fiber on the surface of a fabric, typically due to abrasion.
Simple“I stopped wearing that scarf because the wool started to pill almost immediately.”
In context“The manufacturer claimed the new fabric blend would not pill, yet customers reported surface wear within weeks of purchase.”
UsageIntransitive verb.
“Ahead of a red carpet event for the hit series Heroes, she has said someone on her team handed her a pill to help amp up her energy.”
“A new weight loss pill from Wegovy is now available to buy privately from High Street and online pharmacies in the UK - but is not yet on the NHS.”
* From Middle English pille (also pillem), a borrowing from Middle Low German pille or Middle Dutch pille (whence Dutch pil), probably from Latin pila, pilula. * (persuade or convince): Generalized from red pill.
From Middle English pillen, pilen, from Old English pilian (“to peel”), from Latin pilō (“depilate”), from pilus (“hair”). Doublet of peel.
From Middle English pill, pyll, from Old English pyll (“a pool, pill”), from Proto-Germanic pullijaz (“small pool, ditch, creek”), diminutive of Proto-Germanic pullaz (“pool, stream”), from Proto-Indo-European *bl̥nos (“bog, marsh”). Cognate with Old English pull (“pool, creek”), Scots poll (“slow moving stream, creek, inlet”), Icelandic pollur (“pond, pool, puddle”). More at pool.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.