Pillows

A pillow is a type of bedding— a small (and usually soft) support for the head, usually used while sleeping in a bed, or for the body as used on a couch or chair. There are also throw pillows which are pillows that are purely decorative and not designed for support or comfort. more...

By analogy, in engineering and construction, supporting elements may also be called pillows.

To Pillow:(Dublin colloquial) A verb which describes the act of performing poorly at a task, leaving a group before the completion of a task, not putting in proper effort during a project, poor attendance at meetings during a project, relying mostly on the effort of others to get by. Also used to describe verbal acknowledgement during an audio interview which leaves the soundtrack filled with "Yeah", "I know, yeah" etc.

Pillow construction and parts

Starting at the center a pillow comprises a filler made from foam, synthetic fills, feathers, or down. Traditionally straw was a filler, but this is uncomfortable and rarely used today. Historically feathers and down were the choice of the rich; today artificial fills are the most common.

The fill is then surrounded with a cover or shell made of some form of cloth or silk, known as the pillow case. House pillows (also called cushions) often include a zipper in this cover so that the fill can occasionally be removed and the covering laundered. Bed pillows do not have this feature, and instead a pillow case goes over the pillow, that can be washed. Even with regular washing, pillows tend to accumulate large amounts of dust and vast numbers of microbes among the fill and it is recommended that they be replaced every few years, especially for those with allergies.

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