quill

[ kwil ]

/ kwɪl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR quill ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

one of the large feathers of the wing or tail of a bird.

the hard, hollow, basal part of a feather.

a feather, as of a goose, formed into a pen for writing.

one of the hollow spines on a porcupine or hedgehog.

a plectrum of a harpsichord.

a roll of bark, as of cinnamon, formed in drying.

a reed or other hollow stem on which yarn is wound.

a bobbin or spool.

a toothpick.

Machinery.

a hollow shaft or sleeve through which another independently rotating shaft may pass.
a shaft, joined to and supported by two other shafts or machines, for transmitting motion from one to the other.
a rotating toolholder used in boring or facing internal angles.

a musical pipe, especially one made from a hollow reed.

verb (used with object)

Textiles.

to arrange (fabric) in flutes or cylindrical ridges, as along the edge of a garment, hem, etc.
to wind on a quill, as yarn.

to penetrate with, or as if with, a quill or quills.

to extract a quill or quills from: to quill a duck before cooking it.

Origin of quill

1375–1425; late Middle English quil; compare Low German quiele, German Kiel

OTHER WORDS FROM quill

quill-like, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH quill

quail quell quill

Words nearby quill

quietism, quietly, quietude, quietus, quiff, quill, quill driver, quill pen, quillai, quillai bark, quillback

Example sentences from the Web for quill

The second feature involves a quill and inkwell that will also be featured on the front of the note.

All About the Benjamins: Here’s the Redesigned $100 Bill |Daniel Gross |October 7, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
“Both the quill and the inkwell are copper until you move the note,” said Lambert.

All About the Benjamins: Here’s the Redesigned $100 Bill |Daniel Gross |October 7, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
Edmund Morgan liked, especially, to teach his students how to make and sharpen a quill.

Tell Me What You See: Jill Lepore Salutes Historian Edmund S. Morgan |Jill Lepore |July 10, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
Most of West Plains learned the news from the front-page article in The Quill on March 21.

Missouri, Where Parents Are OK With Armed Teachers |Justin Green |April 15, 2013 |DAILY BEAST

In Aslam's words, it's like “writing very fast with a quill whose other end is on fire.'”

The Greatest Literary Show on Earth |Amulya Gopalakrishnan |January 27, 2009 |DAILY BEAST
The spread of the wings, which are composed of seventeen or eighteen quill feathers, is three feet and a half.

Love's Meinie |John Ruskin
"Candies, I think," said Miss Elisabetha, touching them doubtfully with the end of her quill.

Rodman the Keeper |Constance Fenimore Woolson
Agamemnon agreed to go over to the bookstore to get a quill.

The Peterkin Papers |Lucretia P Hale
The reed or quill pen should be used, and one of the best ways to become intimate with the pen is to cut it to shape for oneself.

Illumination and its Development in the Present Day |Sidney Farnsworth
"Take a seat," said Geoffry Hinchford, indicating one with the feather of the quill pen he held in his hand.

Mattie:--A Stray (Vol 2 of 3) |Frederick William Robinson

British Dictionary definitions for quill

quill

/ (kwɪl) /

noun

any of the large stiff feathers of the wing or tail of a bird
the long hollow central part of a bird's feather; calamus

a bird's feather made into a pen for writing

any of the stiff hollow spines of a porcupine or hedgehog

a device, formerly usually made from a crow quill, for plucking a harpsichord string

angling a length of feather barb stripped of barbules and used for the body of some artificial flies

a small roll of bark, esp one of dried cinnamon

(in weaving) a bobbin or spindle

a fluted fold, as in a ruff

a hollow shaft that rotates upon an inner spindle or concentrically about an internal shaft

verb (tr)

to wind (thread, yarn, etc) onto a spool or bobbin

to make or press fluted folds in (a ruff)

Word Origin for quill

C15 (in the sense: hollow reed or pipe): of uncertain origin; compare Middle Low German quiele quill

Scientific definitions for quill

quill

[ kwĭl ]

The hollow shaft of a feather, the bottom of which attaches to the bird's skin.

One of the sharp hollow spines of a porcupine or hedgehog.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

quill

noun

verb (used with object)

Origin of quill

OTHER WORDS FROM quill

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH quill

Words nearby quill

Example sentences from the Web for quill

British Dictionary definitions for quill

noun

verb (tr)

Word Origin for quill

Scientific definitions for quill

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

quill

noun

verb (used with object)

Origin of quill

OTHER WORDS FROM quill

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH quill

Words nearby quill

Words related to quill

Example sentences from the Web for quill

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noun

verb (tr)

Word Origin for quill

Scientific definitions for quill

British Dictionary definitions for quill