noun pl. pillories -·ries

1. a device consisting of a wooden board with holes for the head and hands, in which petty offenders were formerly locked and exposed to public scorn
2. any exposure to public scorn, etc.

Etymology: ME pilory < OFr pilori < ML pilorium < L pila, column + -orium, -ory

transitive verb pilloried -·ried, pillorying -·ry·ing

1. to punish by placing in a pillory
2. to lay open to public ridicule, scorn, or abuse