pill
/pɪl/ (bre, ipa) · /pɪl/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈpil/ (ame, mw)
pill — noun
- pillsingular
- pillsplural
1. a small round dose you put in your mouth and swallow as medicine
a small round dose you put in your mouth and swallow as medicine
Dad put the vitamin pill beside my glass of water.
collocation: vitamin pill
Nina forgot her allergy pill, so she went back upstairs.
collocation: allergy pill
The nurse gave Leo a pill after lunch for his cough.
One pink pill fell from the box onto the kitchen floor.
文法句型
take a pill
swallow a pill
a pill for pain, sleep, or allergies
用法筆記
Often used for a single small unit of medicine. Distinguish from capsule, which usually has a shell, and from medicine, which is much broader.
常見錯誤
2. a medicine tablet some women take each day so they do not get pregnant
a medicine tablet some women take each day so they do not get pregnant
The doctor explained how to take the pill at the same time daily.
usual phrase: the pill
Mia kept the pill in her handbag and took it every night for birth control.
After missing two days, Sara called the clinic about the pill.
The leaflet says the pill may cause headaches in some women.
- birth control pill
the clear everyday term, especially in American English
- oral contraceptive
a more formal medical expression
- the pill
the common short form in conversation
文法句型
take the pill
go on the pill
miss a pill
用法筆記
Usually appears as 'the pill' in everyday English. It normally means oral contraception, not just any medicine in pill form.
常見錯誤
3. someone who keeps bothering other people and is tiring to be around
someone who keeps bothering other people and is tiring to be around
Everyone avoided Kyle because he could be such a pill at meetings.
informal insult: such a pill
Don't invite Ben again; he was a real pill all evening.
informal insult: a real pill
Our neighbor turns into a pill whenever children play outside.
At dinner, Aunt May said her brother was being a pill again.
- delight
an informal opposite for someone who is pleasant to be with
文法句型
be a pill
such a pill
a real pill
用法筆記
Common in informal speech and usually said about a person who is hard to deal with socially. Distinguish from nuisance, which can describe a situation or thing as well as a person.
4. a little lump of fiber that forms on cloth when the surface rubs
a little lump of fiber that forms on cloth when the surface rubs
This old sweater has pills on both sleeves after one winter.
common plural: pills on a sweater
Mara cut a pill off her coat with small scissors.
pattern: cut off a pill
Dark socks show pills faster than the pale cotton ones.
A row of pills appeared where the backpack rubbed her shirt.
文法句型
pills on a sweater
cut off a pill
fabric with pills
用法筆記
Often plural because fabric usually gets more than one. Distinguish from sense 1, which is medicine, by the clothing context.
pill — verb
- pillpresent simple I / you / we / they
- pills3rd person singular
- pilling-ing form
- pilledpast simple
1. if cloth pills, tiny fiber lumps appear on the surface after wear or washing
if cloth pills, tiny fiber lumps appear on the surface after wear or washing
Cheap wool sweaters pill after only a few weeks of wear.
intransitive: fabric pills
My black school trousers pilled badly after three washes in the old machine.
pattern: pill badly after washing
This blanket will pill less if you wash it by hand.
The sofa fabric pilled near the corner where the cat slept.
- stay smooth
describes cloth that does not form little fiber balls
文法句型
a sweater pills
fabric pills after washing
pill badly or quickly
用法筆記
The subject is usually cloth, clothing, or another soft material. Distinguish from the noun sense 4, which names the little fiber ball itself rather than the process.