noun, feminine/pɛl/plural: pelles
shovel, spade; dustpan; fluke (anchor blade); French kiss
“Les feuilles mortes se ramassent à la pelle / Les souvenirs et les regrets aussi” — Dead leaves are shovelled up / Memories and regrets are too
Synonyms: patin, galoche, palot
Inherited from Middle French pelle, from Old French pele, from Latin pāla (“shovel, spade”). Doublet of pale, which is of either dialectal or Occitan origin.