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LATIN · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

pila.

ball (play/decorative); sphere; mortar, vessel in which things are pounded; squared pillar; pier, pile; low pillar monument; funerary monument w/cavity;

4 characters2 syllables approx.Latina language

Meaning & usage

noun[ˈpiː.ɫa]Classical-Latin[ˈpiː.la][ˈpiː.ɫaː]Classical-Latin[ˈpiː.la]

  1. mortar (used with a pestle)

    declension-1
Where this word comes from

Probably from Proto-Italic *pistlā, from Proto-Indo-European *pis-tlo-, from *peys- (“to crush”), whence also pīlum (“pestle, pounder”), pīnsō (“to pound, crush”).

noun[ˈpiː.ɫa]Classical-Latin[ˈpiː.la][ˈpiː.ɫaː]Classical-Latin[ˈpiː.la]

  1. pillar

    declension-1

  2. pier

    declension-1
Where this word comes from

From Proto-Italic *peilā, further etymology unknown. The Latin denominal pīlāre (“to fix firmly”) finds a parallel in Oscan ehpeílatasset (“[the stele] has been erected”, 3p pf. pass.). Cf., for more, Ancient Greek πῠ́λη (pŭ́lē).

noun[ˈpɪ.ɫa]Classical-Latin[ˈpiː.la][ˈpɪ.ɫaː]Classical-Latin[ˈpiː.la]

  1. ball

    declension-1 · feminine

  2. a game of ball

    declension-1 · feminine · figuratively

  3. globe, sphere

    declension-1 · feminine
Where this word comes from

Likely from pilus (“hair”), thus originally meaning "bundle of hair".

noun[ˈpiː.ɫa]Classical-Latin[ˈpiː.la]

  1. nominative/accusative/vocative plural of pīlum

    accusative · form-of · nominative · plural · vocative
Where this word comes from

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.