purfle

UK: /ˈpɜːf^əl/ US: (pûr′fəl)

Inflections of 'purfle' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

purfles

v 3rd person singular

purfling

v pres p

purfled

v past

purfled

v past p

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

pur•fle  (pûr′fəl), v., -fled, -fling, n. 
v.t. 

1. Furniture to finish with an ornamental border.
2. Architecture to decorate (a shrine or tabernacle) with architectural forms in miniature.

n. 

3. Furniture Also called pur′fling. an ornamental border, as the inlaid border near the outer edge of the table and back of a stringed instrument.

• Latin fīlum. See profile
• Middle French porfiler to make or adorn a border, equivalent. to por- pro¹ + filer to spin, derivative of fil thread
• Middle English purfilen 1275–1325

pur′fler, n. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

purfle / ˈpɜːf^əl/ noun
also: purfling

1. a ruffled or curved ornamental band, as on clothing, furniture, etc

verb

1. (transitive) to decorate with such a band or bands

Etymology: 14th Century: from Old French purfiler to decorate with a border, from filer to spin, from fil thread, from Latin fīlum