pelts
pelts
Pronunciation
The IPA phonetic spelling for the word "pelts" is /pɛlts/.
🗣️ Syllable Breakdown
The word pelts has one syllable.
Sounds:
/p/: voiceless bilabial stop (like the 'p' in "pen")
/ɛ/: open-mid front unrounded vowel (like the 'e' in "bed")
/l/: alveolar lateral approximant (like the 'l' in "light")
/t/: voiceless alveolar stop (like the 't' in "top")
/s/: voiceless alveolar fricative (like the 's' in "sit")
Word Form Variations
The term "pelts" is a conjugation of the word pelt, which can function as both a noun and a verb. The variations are:
Noun:
Singular: pelt
Plural: pelts (the requested word)
Verb (Infinitive: to pelt):
Base Form: pelt
Third-person singular present: pelts (the requested word, depending on context, e.g., "It pelts the window.")
Present participle: pelting
Past tense/Past participle: pelted
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Noun Definitions
1. (Countable)
The skin of a mammal removed from the body, typically retaining its hair, wool, or fur, prepared or suitable for use in clothing or rugs.
Synonyms: hide, skin, fur, coat, fleece
Antonyms: carcass, flesh, viscera (for the rest of the animal's body)
2. (Informal, Usually Singular, Preceded by 'at full')
A state of maximum speed or velocity, often used in the idiom "at full pelt."
Synonyms: speed, dash, rush, velocity, hustle
Antonyms: slowness, crawl, dawdle, saunter
Verb Definitions
1. (Transitive)
To repeatedly strike a person or object by throwing a barrage of items, such as stones or snowballs, or to vigorously assail someone with questions or insults.
Synonyms: bombard, pepper, assail, strike, hurl, stone
Antonyms: defend, guard, protect, shield, parry
2. (Intransitive)
To fall heavily and forcefully, typically used to describe rain, hail, or other forms of precipitation.
Synonyms: pour, teem, rain hard, bucket down
Antonyms: drizzle, sprinkle, cease, stop
3. (Intransitive, Often followed by an adverb or preposition)
To run or move with great speed and urgency.
Synonyms: rush, dash, bolt, sprint, race, tear
Antonyms: amble, saunter, crawl, plod, dally
Examples of Use
Here are several real-world examples of how the word "pelts" is used across various contexts, drawing from its primary definitions as both a noun (animal skins) and a verb (to strike/to run/to rain).
📰 News and Online Publications (Verb and Noun)
Verb (Raining heavily): "The sudden storm moved in quickly, and within minutes, large hailstones began to pelt the city, causing traffic delays and minor damage to cars." (Used as the base form of the verb, with "pelts" as the third-person singular present).
Verb (Striking): "Opposing fans sometimes pelt the field with plastic bottles or debris when a controversial call is made by the referee."
Noun (Animal skins): "The price of sable pelts and other luxury furs has fluctuated wildly this year, driven by changes in global demand and stricter environmental regulations."
📚 Books and Literature (Noun and Verb)
Noun (Animal skins): "The hunter carefully dried the bear pelts near the fire, knowing that their sale was crucial for getting his family through the harsh winter." (Based on usage in historical or frontier fiction).
Verb (Running/Moving fast): "The deer, sensing danger, took off at full pelt across the meadow, disappearing into the dense line of trees before the photographer could react." (Based on usage in nature writing or adventure novels).
🎬 Entertainment Media and Platforms (Verb and Noun)
Public Discourse/Social Media (Verb - Striking): When discussing controversial public figures, comments online might say, "It seems every time the politician makes a statement, critics pelt them with negative reactions and demands for clarification."
Film Dialogue (Noun - Animal skins): A character in a period drama discussing trade: "We need to secure a better price for those beaver pelts if we're going to turn a profit this season."
Weather Report/Video Forecast (Verb - Raining heavily): A meteorologist on a live broadcast might warn: "Expect torrential downpours across the coastal region, where rain will pelt the shoreline through the night."
🗣️ General Public Discourse (Verb)
General Conversation (Running/Moving fast): "I was already running late, so when I heard the bus approaching, I had to sprint at full pelt just to make it to the stop."
Describing a game (Striking): "During the water balloon toss, everyone was laughing as the kids tried to pelt the opposing team's captain from behind the barrier."
10 Famous Quotes Using Pelts
"Tallkit backed away as their dark brown pelts scuffed the snow." (Erin Hunter, Tallstar's Revenge)
"They were lined with the pelts of cast-off teddy bears." (Ann Patchett, The Magician's Assistant)
"They made for the horses with all speed, riding at full pelts until they reached the river bend."
"And your mouth was stuffed with the dusty upholstery smell of their heated pelts, and the yellow of them was in your eyes." (Ray Bradbury, The Veldt)
"A single perfect hide is worth more than a wagonload of mangy pelts."
"The trapper meticulously counted his meager stack of fox pelts and began the long journey to the trading post."
"He sells the skins of all the beasts he catches, and the pelts are a fine source of income for his family."
"When the truth came out, critics began to pelt the disgraced official with questions he could not answer."
"During the height of the summer thunderstorm, the rain pelts the windows with unrelenting force."
"She remembered the thick, warm, musk-scented pelts that had kept them alive during the brutal winter."
Etymology
The word "pelt" (from which "pelts" is derived) has two main and distinct origins, corresponding to its two primary uses as a noun and a verb.
1. Noun Meaning: Animal Skin
Origin: The noun "pelt," meaning the skin or hide of an animal, comes from Middle English pelt or pelle, which ultimately traces back to the Latin word $pellis$ meaning "skin, hide, or membrane."
First Known Use & Meaning: This meaning has been in English since around the 13th century. It originally referred to the untanned skin with the hair or fur still attached, especially as a material ready for dressing by a tanner or furrier.
2. Verb Meaning: To Throw or To Strike
Origin: The verb "pelt," meaning to strike by throwing things at, or to fall heavily (like rain), has a less clear but likely separate origin. It is probably of Scandinavian origin, similar to words like the Swedish pälta (to run fast) or the Norwegian pilta (to throw).
First Known Use & Meaning: This verb sense seems to have entered English usage much later, around the 15th or 16th century. Its earliest meaning was likely "to beat or strike with blows," which evolved into the specific sense of striking by throwing missiles or, later, describing heavy rainfall. The sense of running "at full pelt" (speed) also developed from this verb root.
Phrases + Idioms Containing Pelts
At full pelt: Moving or running at maximum speed or velocity.
Example: The delivery driver ran across the parking lot at full pelt to beat the clock.
Pelt with questions: To rapidly ask a person a large number of questions, often in an aggressive or overwhelming way.
Example: The reporters began to pelt the witness with questions about the incident.
Pelt with stones/snowballs/missiles: To repeatedly strike a person or object by throwing small items at them.
Example: The children liked to pelt the old oak tree with snowballs in the winter.
Rain/Hail pelts down: Describes precipitation (rain or hail) falling very heavily and forcefully.
Example: We had to pull over because the rain was pelting down so hard we couldn't see the road.
A bundle of pelts: (Original/Lesser-known) Refers to a large collection of animal skins, especially those grouped together for trade.
Example: The trapper arrived at the market with a bundle of pelts ready to sell.
Trading pelts: (Original/Lesser-known) Describes the historical activity of exchanging animal furs for goods, services, or currency.
Example: The historic settlement was built primarily around the business of trading pelts with the interior tribes.
Shedding its pelt: (Lesser-known) Refers to an animal losing its coat of fur or hair, often seasonally. (Uses the base word).
Example: The dog spends all of spring shedding its pelt in preparation for the summer heat.
Get under one's pelt: (Original, using a synonym effect for 'skin') To annoy or irritate someone deeply.
Example: That constant buzzing noise really gets under my pelt.
To tan a pelt: (Lesser-known) The process of treating an animal skin to turn it into leather or durable material.
Example: The survivalist showed us how to tan a pelt using natural ingredients.
Give it the full pelt: (Original/Informal) To exert maximum effort or go as fast as possible.
Example: We were already late, so we had to give it the full pelt to catch the train.
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of pelts from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
