What does "frill" mean?
A strip of pleated fabric or paper used as decoration or trim.
Frill
/fɹɪl/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A strip of pleated fabric or paper used as decoration or trim.
- Grammar: frill is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: ruffle, accessory, addition, adorn.
- Useful contrasts: essentials, necessity, pith.
- Usage evidence: Holmes pushed back the frill of black lace which fringed the hand that lay upon our visitor's knee. Five little livid spots, the marks of four fingers and a thumb, were printed upon the white wrist.
How to use "frill"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "frill" 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 "frill" 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 "frill" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "frill" 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 "frill" 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 "ruffle" 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 "frill", 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 strip of pleated fabric or paper used as decoration or trim.
"1777, Samuel Jackson Pratt (as Courtney Melmoth), Liberal Opinions, upon Animals, Man, and Providence, London: G. Robinson and J. Bew, Volume 5, Chapter 114, p. 163, […] one of her husband Jeffery’s shirts (with frills to the bosom) […]"
- 2 ornamental objects of no great value wordnet
- 3 A substance or material on the edge of something, resembling such a strip of fabric. figuratively
"Nothing moved in sky, land, or sea, except a frill of milkwhite foam along the nearer angles of the shore, shreds of which licked the contiguous stones like tongues."
- 4 a strip of pleated material used as a decoration or a trim wordnet
- 5 A wrinkled edge to a film.
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 an external body part consisting of feathers or hair about the neck of a bird or other animal wordnet
- 7 Something extraneous or not essential; something purely for show or effect; a luxury. figuratively
"My name is Sammy Carleton. Not ‘Mr.’ Carleton, but just plain Sammy. I’m a regular no-nonsense man with no fancy frills about me. I want you to call me Sammy."
- 8 (paleontology) a bony plate that curves upward behind the skull of many ceratopsian dinosaurs wordnet
- 9 The relatively extensive margin seen on the back of the heads of reptiles, with either a bony support or a cartilaginous one.
"A large admiral lizard leapt up on a rail, stood on hind legs with fore legs raised like hands and watched for a moment […], then loped down the cess-path with arms swinging and iridescent frill flying out like a cape […]"
- 10 Synonym of armilla.
Verb
- 1 To make into a frill. transitive
- 2 To shake or shiver as with cold (with reference to a hawk). intransitive, obsolete
- 3 To become wrinkled. intransitive
- 4 To cry (with reference to a bird of prey). intransitive, obsolete
"1688, Randle Holme, The Academy of Armory, Chester: for the author, Book 2, Chapter 13, “Of the Voices of Birds,” p. 310, The Eagle Frilleth, or Scriketh The Hawk, as Falcon, Gawshawk, and all such Birds of Prey, cryeth, peepeth, or frilleth."
- 5 To provide or decorate with a frill or frills; to turn back in crimped plaits. transitive
"And I will be bold to ſay my two girls have had a pretty good education, and capacity, [...] they underſtand their needle, breadſtitch, croſs and change, and all manner of plain-work; they can pink, point, and frill; [...]"
Antonyms
Example
"Holmes pushed back the frill of black lace which fringed the hand that lay upon our visitor's knee. Five little livid spots, the marks of four fingers and a thumb, were printed upon the white wrist."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "frill"?
Common synonyms include: ruffle, accessory, addition, adorn, adornment, amenity.
How do you use "frill" in a sentence?
Holmes pushed back the frill of black lace which fringed the hand that lay upon our visitor's knee. Five little livid spots, the marks of four fingers and a thumb, were printed upon the white wrist.
How do you pronounce "frill"?
Pronounced /fɹɪl/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Of uncertain origin.
Etymology 2
From Old French friller.