I. pen ‧ cil 1 S2 /ˈpens ə l/ BrE AmE noun [uncountable and countable]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: pincel 'paintbrush' , from Latin penicillus 'little tail' , from penis ; ⇨ ↑ penis ]
an instrument that you use for writing or drawing, consisting of a wooden stick with a thin piece of a black or coloured substance in the middle:
a sharp pencil
a blue pencil
in pencil
a note written in pencil
a pencil sketch
⇨ ↑ eyebrow pencil
II. pencil 2 BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle pencilled , present participle pencilling British English , penciled , penciling American English ) [transitive]
to write something or make a mark with a pencil:
a name pencilled on the envelope
pencil somebody/something ↔ in phrasal verb
to make an arrangement for a meeting or other event, knowing that it might have to be changed later:
Pickford has been pencilled in as Robson’s replacement.