What does "fillet" mean?
A headband; a ribbon or other band used to tie the hair up, or keep a headdress in place, or for decoration.
Fillet
/ˈfɪl.ɪt/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A headband; a ribbon or other band used to tie the hair up, or keep a headdress in place, or for decoration.
- Grammar: fillet is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: tenderloin, adhesive tape, anklet, armlet.
- Useful contrasts: angular edge, bone, bone-in cut.
- Usage evidence: Having indigestion after eating some fillet while working isn't one of the best things to do.
How to use "fillet"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "fillet" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "fillet" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "fillet" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "fillet" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "fillet" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "tenderloin" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "fillet", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A headband; a ribbon or other band used to tie the hair up, or keep a headdress in place, or for decoration. archaic
"In secret shadow, farre from all mens sight: From her faire head her fillet she undight, And laid her stole aside."
- 2 lace having a square mesh wordnet
- 3 A thin strip of any material, in various technical uses.
- 4 fastener consisting of a narrow strip of welded metal used to join steel members wordnet
- 5 A heavy bead of waterproofing compound or sealant material generally installed at the point where vertical and horizontal surfaces meet.
Show 16 more definitions
- 6 a narrow headband or strip of ribbon worn as a headband wordnet
- 7 A rounded relief or cut at an edge, especially an inside edge, added for a finished appearance and to break sharp edges.
- 8 a bundle of sensory nerve fibers going to the thalamus wordnet
- 9 A strip or compact piece of meat or fish from which any bones and skin and feathers have been removed.
"Fillet of a Fenny Snake, / In the Cauldron boyle and bake:"
- 10 a longitudinal slice or boned side of a fish wordnet
- 11 A premium cut of meat, especially beef, taken from below the lower back of the animal, considered to be lean and tender; also called tenderloin. UK
"fillet steak"
- 12 a boneless steak cut from the tenderloin of beef wordnet
- 13 A thin featureless moulding/molding used as separation between broader decorative mouldings.
- 14 The space between two flutings in a shaft.
- 15 An ordinary equal in breadth to one quarter of the chief, to the lowest portion of which it corresponds in position.
- 16 The thread of a screw.
- 17 A colored or gilded border.
"Fairer than gods and naked as the moon, The foamy fillets at their ankles strewn Less marble-white than they"
- 18 The raised moulding around the muzzle of a gun.
- 19 Any scantling smaller than a batten.
- 20 A fascia; a band of fibres; applied especially to certain bands of white matter in the brain.
- 21 The loins of a horse, beginning at the place where the hinder part of the saddle rests.
Verb
- 1 To slice, bone or make into fillets. transitive
- 2 cut into filets wordnet
- 3 To apply, create, or specify a rounded or filled corner to. transitive
- 4 decorate with a lace of geometric designs wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Having indigestion after eating some fillet while working isn't one of the best things to do."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "fillet"?
Common synonyms include: tenderloin, adhesive tape, anklet, armlet, band, bandage.
How do you use "fillet" in a sentence?
Having indigestion after eating some fillet while working isn't one of the best things to do.
How do you pronounce "fillet"?
Pronounced /ˈfɪl.ɪt/.
Etymology
From Middle English filet, vylette, felet, filette, flette, from Old French filet, diminutive of fil (“thread”), from Latin fīlum (“thread”).