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billet¹ Definition

bil·let (bil′it)

noun

  1. Obsolete a brief document or letter
  2. a written order to provide quarters or lodging for military personnel, as in private buildings
    1. the quarters thus assigned or occupied
    2. the sleeping place assigned to a sailor on ship
  4. a position, job, or situation

Etymology: ME < Anglo-Fr, dim. of bille, bill

transitive verb

  1. to assign to lodging by billet
  2. to assign to a post
  3. to serve a billet on

intransitive verb

to be billeted or quartered

billet² Definition

bil·let (bil′it)

noun

    1. a short, thick piece of firewood
    2. Obsolete a wooden club
    1. a long, rectangular or cylindrical unfinished bar of iron or steel, usually smaller than c. 232 sq cm (c. 36 sq in) in cross section
    2. a similar, generally smaller, bar made from a nonferrous metal
  3. Archit. a log-shaped insert in a Norman molding

  4. Etymology: ? < another source

    Saddlery any of the straps used to fasten the saddletree to the girth

Etymology: ME < OFr billette, dim. of bille < Gaul *bilia, tree trunk, akin to Ir bile, tree

billet Usage Examples

Object

  • soldier: There were a lot of soldiers billeted in Fairford; the cook's husband was overseas in the Army.
  • troop: Many services and prayer meetings were held in our Church for troops billeted here or moving through the area to go abroad.
  • officer: They were full of evacuees - billeting officer 's went round knocking on doors, asking how many rooms have you got?

Converse of object

  • find: Endeavor to find billets for No 1 in the afternoon and get wet through.
  • have: Had an excellent billet next room to the mess.

Adjective modifier

  • solid: The base plate was machined from a solid aluminum billet.
  • new: When the CRE dismissed me I thankfully set off for our new billet, arriving about midnight.
  • good: The rest of us followed on Friday relying on our mates to have blagged a good billet.

Modifies a noun

  • aluminum: Machined from billet aluminum with 8 dimples these trims can be fitted in a few seconds without any tools.
  • aluminum: This noble alloy is found in the magnesium generator cover with titanium screws and dedicated sprocket cover of billet aluminum.

Modifying Another Word

  • there: I was the junior member of 78 Squad which joined in 1941, the year in which the School was billeted there.
  • here: Many services and prayer meetings were held in our Church for troops billeted here or moving through the area to go abroad.

Noun used with modifier

  • aluminum: The base plate was machined from a solid aluminum billet.
  • steel: The works rolled steel billets from the 1930's to 1964.

Preposition: in

  • village: In Europe I was billeted in a village on the banks of the river Elbe about 40 miles form Hamburg.
  • house: For the first winter the men were billeted in private houses in the area east of Egerton Road, North Shore.
  • town: He was then billeted in the town of Colchester.

Preposition: of

material: Imagine a rectangular billet of material on the mill table.

Preposition: with

family: By the end of the war Lionel Blue had been billeted with a dozen families.

Preposition: for

night: At Truro, we went to find the Carlton Hotel, our billet for the night.