Word of the Day Archive
Friday August 10, 2012
pillory \PIL-uh-ree\
, verb:
1. To expose to public derision, ridicule, or abuse.
2. To set in the pillory.
Nawal El Saadawi has been pilloried, censored, imprisoned and exiled for her refusal to accept the oppressions imposed on women by gender and class.
-- Nawāl Saʻdāwī, A Daughter of Isis
Since Nixon, US Presidents had tended to be pilloried for misdemeanours.
-- John Gubert, The Financial Terrorist
Pillory comes from the Latin word pillar. It was first used as a verb in the 1600s.
Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation for pillory
