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Definition of pile verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

pile

verb
 
/paɪl/
 
/paɪl/
Verb Forms
present simple I / you / we / they pile
 
/paɪl/
 
/paɪl/
he / she / it piles
 
/paɪlz/
 
/paɪlz/
past simple piled
 
/paɪld/
 
/paɪld/
past participle piled
 
/paɪld/
 
/paɪld/
-ing form piling
 
/ˈpaɪlɪŋ/
 
/ˈpaɪlɪŋ/
Idioms Phrasal Verbs
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  1. [transitive] to put things one on top of another; to form a pile
    • pile something She piled the boxes one on top of the other.
    • The clothes were piled high on the chair.
    • pile something up Snow was piled up against the door.
    • We piled the boxes up neatly.
    • pile something + adv./prep. We piled sandbags against the doors.
    • She was sitting at her desk with books piled around her.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • neatly
    • haphazardly
    • up
    preposition
    • against
    • on
    • onto
    phrases
    • piled high
    See full entry
  2. [transitive] to put something on/into something; to load something with something
    • pile A with B The sofa was piled high with cushions.
    • He piled his plate with as much food as he could.
    • pile B on(to) A He piled as much food as he could onto his plate.
    • pile B in(to) A She piled everything into her suitcase.
    see also stockpile
    Extra Examples
    • She piled food onto our plates.
    • a table piled high with magazines
    • They piled stones on top of the mound.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • neatly
    • haphazardly
    • up
    preposition
    • against
    • on
    • onto
    phrases
    • piled high
    See full entry
  3. [intransitive] + adv./prep. (informal) (of a number of people) to go somewhere quickly without order or control
    • The coach finally arrived and we all piled on.
    • Children were piling out of the school bus.
    • The bell rang and kids started piling into the classroom.
  4. Word Originverb ,late Middle English: from Old French, from Latin pila ‘pillar, pier’.
Idioms
pile on the agony/gloom
  1. (especially British English, informal) to make an unpleasant situation worse
    • Bosses piled on the agony with threats of more job losses.
See pile in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
sufficiently
adverb
 
 
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