First Known Use: 15th century
Dictionary
1billet
noun bil·let \ˈbi-lət\
Definition of BILLET
1
archaic : a brief letter : note
2
a : an official order directing that a member of a military force be provided with board and lodging (as in a private home) b : quarters assigned by or as if by a billet
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Origin of BILLET
Middle English bylet, from Anglo-French billette, diminutive of bille bill
2billet
verb
: to put (someone, such as a soldier) in a private home to live there temporarily
Full Definition of BILLET
transitive verb
1
: to assign lodging to (as soldiers) by or as if by a billet
2
: to serve with a billet <billet a householder>
See billet defined for English-language learners
First Known Use of BILLET
1594
Related to BILLET
3billet
noun
Definition of BILLET
1
a : a chunky piece of wood (as for firewood) b obsolete : cudgel
2
a : a bar of metal b : a piece of semifinished iron or steel nearly square in section made by rolling an ingot or bloom c : a section of nonferrous metal ingot hot-worked by forging, rolling, or extrusion d : a nonferrous casting suitable for rolling or extrusion
Origin of BILLET
Middle English bylet, from Anglo-French billete, diminutive of bille log, of Celtic origin; akin to Old Irish bile landmark tree
First Known Use: 15th century
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