Aiguille (Fr., 'needle'), an instrument used by military engineers to pierce a rock for the reception of gunpowder, when any blasting or blowing-up is to be effected. The word is also used of the needle-like peaks or summits of mountains, especially in the Alps.
Aiguille
Chambers's Encyclopaedia, Volume 1: A to Beaufort, p. 108
Source scan(s): p. 0123