# pestle

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈpɛsəl/ · frequency rank #50,718

## Definitions
1. A club-shaped, round-headed stick used in a mortar to pound, crush, rub or grind things.
2. A constable's or bailiff's staff; so called from its shape.
3. The leg and leg bone of an animal, especially of a pig.

## Etymology
From Middle English pestel, pestell, from Old French pestel, from Latin pistillum, from pīnsō (“pound, beat”). Doublet of pistil and pistillum.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/pestle