Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - pile

~1 n 1 »LARGE AMOUNT/MASS« a) a tidy collection of several things of the same kind placed on top of each other; stack1 (1)  (We put the newspapers in piles on the floor. | The record I want is at the bottom of the pile.) + of  (a pile of blankets)  (- compare heap1 (1)) b) a large mass of things collected together  (big pile of brushwood) 2 a pile of also piles of informal a lot of something  (I've got piles of work to do this evening.) 3 at the bottom of the pile in a very weak position in society or in an organization  (At the bottom of the pile are young people in their first jobs.) 4 »CLOTH/CARPETS« the soft surface of short threads on a carpet or some types of cloth, especially velvet  (a deep pile carpet)  (- compare nap1 (2)) 5 »POST« a heavy post made of wood, stone, or metal, pushed into the ground as a support for a building, bridge etc 6 make a/your pile informal to make a lot of money  (He made his pile in the antiques business.) 7 »BUILDING« especially BrE a large tall old building or group of buildings  (They live in a rambling Victorian pile.) 8 »MEDICAL« piles BrE not technical haemorrhoids ~2 v 1 also pile up to make a pile by collecting things together; stack2 (1)  (Ma stacked the cups and piled the plates. | We piled the books up on the table.) ~ sth high (=make a tall pile)  (Clothes were piled high on the chair) 2 to fill something or cover a surface with a lot of something  (Anna piled spaghetti onto her plate.) be ~d (high) with  (The cart was piled high with fruit and vegetables.)  ( @pile in pile in/into sth phr v to go quickly into a place or vehicle in a disorganized way  (We all piled into the back of his car.) @pile on pile on phr v informal 1 pile on the praise/criticism etc also pile it on to talk about something in a way that makes it seem much better or much worse than it really is; exaggerate  (Mitch was really piling on the compliments! | It can't be that bad - Nellie tends to pile it on.) 2 pile on the agony BrE to enjoy making something seem worse than it really is @pile out pile out phr v to quickly leave a place or get out of a vehicle in a rather disorderly way + of  (As soon as the bell went the kids piled out of the building.) @pile up pile up phr v to become much larger in quantity or amount, or to make something do this; accumulate  (Work is really piling up.) ~ sth up  (Greg has managed to pile up enormous debts.)  (- see also pile­up) @ )