pile

A mass of things heaped together; a heap.

I climbed through, and, standing on a pile of stones, lifted and dragged Cleopatra after me.

A group or list of related items up for consideration, especially in some kind of selection process.

When we were looking for a new housemate, we put the nice woman on the "maybe" pile, and the annoying guy on the "no" pile

A mass formed in layers.

a pile of shot

A funeral pile; a pyre.

Jove with a Nod, comply'd with her Deſire; / Around the Body flam'd the Funeral Fire; / The Pile decreas'd that lately ſeem'd ſo high, / And Sheets of Smoak roll'd upward to the Sky: [...]

A large amount of money.

He made a pile from that invention of his.

When they are at work they live most frugally, denying themselves every comfort and luxury till they have made a "pile."

To lay or throw into a pile or heap; to heap up; to collect into a mass; to accumulate

They were piling up wood on the wheelbarrow.

To cover with heaps; or in great abundance; to fill or overfill; to load.

We piled the camel with our loads.

Private-equity nabobs bristle at being dubbed mere financiers. Piling debt onto companies’ balance-sheets is only a small part of what leveraged buy-outs are about, they insist. Improving the workings of the businesses they take over is just as core to their calling, if not more so. Much of their pleading is public-relations bluster.

To add something to a great number.

But as the second half wore on, Sunderland piled forward at every opportunity and their relentless pressure looked certain to be rewarded in the closing stages.

(of vehicles) To create a hold-up.

To place (guns, muskets, etc.) together in threes so that they can stand upright, supporting each other.

A dart; an arrow.

The head of an arrow or spear.

A large stake, or piece of pointed timber, steel etc., driven into the earth or sea-bed for the support of a building, a pier, or other superstructure, or to form a cofferdam, etc.

All this time I worked very hard [...] and it is scarce credible what inexpressible labour everything was done with, especially the bringing piles out of the woods and driving them into the ground; for I made them much bigger than I needed to have done.

One of the ordinaries or subordinaries having the form of a wedge, usually placed palewise, with the broadest end uppermost.