Meanings
nounpestle (plural pestles)
plural pestles
- A club-shaped, round-headed stick used in a mortar to pound, crush, rub or grind things.
She then sat down by the fire, and carefully separated the stone from the pulp, which she burnt; and her next task was to extract the kernel, which she did by means of a heavy pestle and the hearth. The kernels were next crushed together, and placed to simmer over the furnace.
1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “The Laboratory”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 327 - archaicA constable's or bailiff's staff; so called from its shape.
I long to meet a Sergeant in this humor, I vvould […] trie vvhether the chopping knife or their peſtles vvere the better vveapons.
1611, George Chapman, May-Day. A Witty Comedie, […], London: […] [William Stansby] for Iohn Brown, […], →OCLC, Act IV, page 56
verbpestle (third-person singular simple present pestles, present participle pestling, simple past and past participle pestled)
present singular third person pestles · participle present pestling · participle past pestled · past pestled
- transitiveTo pound, crush, rub or grind, as in a mortar with a pestle.
‘Next time, boy, that you use that mortar for garlic, I will personally knock out your brain, place it in the said mortar, pestle it to a fine paste and give it to Dick Purser for feeding the dogs.’
2020, Hilary Mantel, The Mirror and the Light, Fourth Estate, page 47
Synonyms & antonyms
nounmachine consisting of a heavy bar that moves vertically for pounding or crushing ores
Similar
Broader
nouna heavy tool of stone or iron (usually with a flat base and a handle) that is used to grind and mix material (as grain or drugs or pigments) against a slab of stone
Broader
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinpistillum
- Old Frenchpestel
- Middle Englishpestel
- Englishpestle
From Middle English pestel, pestell, from Old French pestel, from Latin pistillum, from pīnsō (“pound, beat”). Doublet of pistil and pistillum.
More words from Middle English, Old French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans stamper
- stamperinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Ancient Greek ὕπερος, δοῖδυξ
- ὕπερος (húperos)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- δοῖδυξ (doîdux)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- ναγεύς (nageús)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Arabic مِدَقَّة, يَد
- مِدَقَّة (midaqqa)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- يَد (yad)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- دَسْتَج (dastaj)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Bulgarian токма́к, пе́стик
- токма́к (tokmák)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- пе́стик (péstik)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- чука́ло (čukálo)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- тлъчо́к (tlăčók)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- тлъ́чник (tlắčnik)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- бия́ло (bijálo)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Catalan mà de morter, maça
- mà de morterinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- maçainstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Chinese Mandarin 碓
- 碓 (duì)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Czech palička
- paličkainstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Danish pistil, støder
- pistilinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- støderinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Dutch stamper
- stamperinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Estonian uhmrinui
- uhmrinuiinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Finnish petkel, survin
- petkelinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- survininstrument used with a mortar to grind things
French pilon
- piloninstrument used with a mortar to grind things
German Stößel, Mörserkeule
- Stößelinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- Mörserkeuleinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- Stampferinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Greek γουδοχέρι
- γουδοχέρι (goudochéri)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Hawaiian kuʻi
- kuʻiinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Hebrew מָדוֹךְ, עֱלִי
- מָדוֹךְ (madokh)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- עֱלִי (eli)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Hungarian mozsártörő
- mozsártörőinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Icelandic stautur
- stauturinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Indonesian alu, antan
- aluinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- antaninstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Irish tuairgnín
- tuairgníninstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Italian pestello
- pestelloinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Japanese 杵, 擂り粉木
- 杵 (kine)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- 擂り粉木 (surikogi)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Korean 방앗공이, 절굿공이
- 방앗공이 (bang'atgong'i)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- 절굿공이 (jeolgutgong'i)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- 막자 (makja)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Latin pistillum
- pistilluminstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Malay perosak, alu
- perosakinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- aluinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- pengentakinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Māori tuki, paoi
- tukiinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- paoiinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- ngahiriinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- morengainstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- pōtukiinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- kuruinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Norwegian Bokmål pistill, støter
- pistillinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- støterinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Persian یانه, دسته هاون
- یانه (yāne)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- دسته هاون (daste hāvan)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- یاور (yāvar)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Polish tłuczek
- tłuczekinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Portuguese pilão
- pilãoinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Romanian pistil
- pistilinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Russian пест, пе́стик
- пест (pest)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- пе́стик (péstik)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- толка́ч (tolkáč)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Scottish Gaelic plocan
- plocaninstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Spanish mano, maneta
- manoinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- manetainstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- majainstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- macillainstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- paloinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- machacaderainstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- machacainstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- pistaderoinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- tejoloteinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Swahili mchi
- mchiinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Swedish mortelstöt, pistill
- mortelstötinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- pistillinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Tagalog pambayo, halo
- pambayoinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- haloinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- pandikdikinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
- panligisinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Tamil உலக்கை, குழவி
- உலக்கை (ulakkai)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
- குழவி (kuḻavi)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Thai สาก
- สาก (sàak)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Turkish tokmak
- tokmakinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Ukrainian пе́стик
- пе́стик (péstyk)instrument used with a mortar to grind things
Vietnamese chày
- chàyinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Welsh pestl
- pestlinstrument used with a mortar to grind things
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with pestle
All rhymes →Anagrams
Cite this entry
APA
pestle. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pestle
MLA
“pestle.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pestle. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pestle,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pestle.
Source: pestle on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.