PICKERY
Pick"er*y, n. Etym: [From Pick to steal; or perhaps from Pickeer.]
Defn: Petty theft. [Scot.] Holinshed.
PICKET
Pick"et, n. Etym: [F. piquet, properly dim. of pique spear, pike. See
Pike, and cf. Piquet.]
1. A stake sharpened or pointed, especially one used in fortification and encampments, to mark bounds and angles; or one used for tethering horses.
2. A pointed pale, used in marking fences.
3. Etym: [Probably so called from the picketing of the horses.] (Mil.)
Defn: A detached body of troops serving to guard an army from surprise, and to oppose reconnoitering parties of the enemy; — called also outlying picket.
4. By extension, men appointed by a trades union, or other labor organization, to intercept outsiders, and prevent them from working for employers with whom the organization is at variance. [Cant]
5. A military punishment, formerly resorted to, in which the offender was forced to stand with one foot on a pointed stake.
6. A game at cards. See Piquet. Inlying picket (Mil.), a detachment of troops held in camp or quarters, detailed to march if called upon. — Picket fence, a fence made of pickets. See def. 2, above. — Picket guard (Mil.), a guard of horse and foot, always in readiness in case of alarm. — Picket line. (Mil.) (a) A position held and guarded by small bodies of men placed at intervals. (b) A rope to which horses are secured when groomed. — Picketpin, an iron pin for picketing horses.