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bil·let 1 (bĭlĭt)
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n.
1.
a. Lodging for troops.
b. A written order directing that such lodging be provided.
2. A position of employment; a job.
3. Archaic A short letter; a note.
v. bil·let·ed, bil·let·ing, bil·lets
v.tr.
1.
a. To lodge (soldiers).
b. To serve (a person) with a written order to provide lodging for soldiers.
2. To assign lodging to.
v.intr.
To be quartered; lodge.
[Middle English, official register, from Old French billette, from bullette, diminutive of bulle, document, from Medieval Latin bulla, document, seal; see BILL1.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
bil·let 2 (bĭlĭt)
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n.
1. A short, thick piece of wood, especially one used as firewood.
2. One of a series of regularly spaced, log-shaped segments used as an ornamental motif on moldings in Norman architecture.
3.
a. A small, usually rectangular bar of iron or steel in an intermediate stage of manufacture.
b. A small ingot of nonferrous metal.
4.
a. The part of a harness strap that passes through a buckle.
b. A loop or pocket for securing the end of a buckled harness strap.
[Middle English, from Old French billette, diminutive of bille, log, from Vulgar Latin *bilia, possibly of Celtic origin.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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