Meaning & use
piles
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Meanings
nounpluralmedicalBritishinformal
Painful swollen veins in or near the anus, which can itch or bleed.
Grammar: Always plural with a plural verb: piles are common in pregnancy.
Patterns
- suffer from piles
- have piles
Eating more fiber can help prevent piles.
He was embarrassed to talk to the doctor about his piles.
Piles are common during pregnancy and often go away afterward.
nounplural
Heaps of things lying on top of one another.
Grammar: Plural of pile, often followed by of: piles of books.
Patterns
- piles of something
There were piles of laundry on the bedroom floor.
Piles of snow lined the edges of the road.
Piles of old magazines filled the attic.
nounpluralinformal
A large amount of something, as in having piles of money or work.
Grammar: Informal use before of: piles of homework.
Patterns
- piles of something
I have piles of homework this weekend.
They made piles of money from the business.
She got piles of messages after the announcement.
Word forms
| singular | pile |
|---|
Common combinations
- suffer from piles
- Many people suffer from piles at some point.
- treat piles
- A cream can help treat piles.
- piles of paperwork
- His desk was buried under piles of paperwork.
- piles of money
- The company makes piles of money each year.
- piles of clothes
- She sorted the piles of clothes into three groups.
Synonyms and how they differ
- hemorrhoids
- Hemorrhoids is the standard medical term and is the usual word in American English, while piles is the everyday British word.
- heaps
- Heaps is the informal plural for large amounts and carries no medical meaning.
- stacks
- Stacks suggests neat, orderly layers, while piles may be messy.
- loads
- Loads is more informal and only means a large amount, never a literal heap.
Word family
Commonly confused: piles or pills?
piles vs pills
Pills are small tablets of medicine; piles are either heaps or the medical condition.
Practice
My doctor said that straining and a low-fiber diet can cause ______, a painful condition around the anus.
Choose one answer.
Piles is the British everyday word for swollen veins near the anus. Pills are medicine tablets, a tempting but incorrect similar word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “piles”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.