The pillory is a device made of a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, used during the medieval and renaissance periods for …

: to set in a pillory as punishment. : to expose to public contempt, ridicule, or scorn. Did you know? In days gone by, criminals who got caught might well have found themselves in the stocks …

PILLORY definition: 1. to severely criticize someone, especially in a public way: 2. to severely criticize someone…. Learn more.

PILLORY definition: a wooden framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, formerly used to expose an offender to public derision. See examples of pillory used in …

A pillory is a wooden frame with holes for the head and hands. In Europe in former times criminals were sometimes locked in a pillory as a form of punishment. Collins COBUILD Advanced …

Pillory, an instrument of corporal punishment consisting of a wooden post and frame fixed on a platform raised several feet from the ground. The head and hands of the offender were thrust …

The pillory, also known as the pillory stocks, was a form of punishment in which offenders were held in a public place for public humiliation and ridicule. It consisted of a wooden framework …

Nov 8, 2025 · pillory (plural pillories) A framework on a post, with holes for the hands and head, used as a means of punishment and humiliation. quotations

To expose to ridicule and abuse. 2. To put in a pillory as punishment. [Middle English, from Old French pilori, probably from Latin pīla, pillar.] American Heritage® Dictionary of the English …

pillory, n. meanings, etymology, pronunciation and more in the Oxford English Dictionary