aiguille

See also: aiguillé

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French aiguille (“needle”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈeɪ.ɡwiː/, /ˈeɪ.ɡwɪl/

Noun

aiguille (plural aiguilles)

1. A needle-shaped peak. [from 19th c.]
   • 1818, Mary Shelley, Frankenstein:

     Mont Blanc, the supreme and magnificent Mont Blanc, raised itself from the surrounding aiguilles, and its tremendous dome overlooked the valley.

2. An instrument for boring holes, used in blasting.

Related terms

• aglet

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French

Alternative forms

• (obsolete) aguille
• (nonstandard) aigüille, aiguïlle

Etymology

From Old French aguille, from Vulgar Latin *acūcla < *acūcula, diminutive of Latin acus (“needle”). Perhaps influenced phonetically by aiguiser.

• Cognate with Italian agucchia, Portuguese agulha, Spanish aguja

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /e.ɡɥij/, /ɛ.ɡɥij/ ~ /e.ɡɥij/

• audio:

  (file)

• Audio (Paris):

  (file)

Noun

aiguille f (plural aiguilles)

1. (botany, costumery, medicine) needle
2. needle (of compass); hand (of watch); spire (of church)
3. (railway) point (UK), switch (US)

Derived terms

• aiguille à tricoter
• aiguiller
• aiguillette, aiglet
• de fil en aiguille ("one thing leading to another")

Related terms

• aigu
• aiguillon
• aiguiser

See also

• épingle f

Verb

aiguille

1. first-person singular present indicative of aiguiller
2. third-person singular present indicative of aiguiller
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of aiguiller
4. third-person singular present subjunctive of aiguiller
5. second-person singular imperative of aiguiller

Further reading

• “aiguille”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.