Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Pledget

Pledget , noun

[Prov. English, a small plug.]

1.
A small plug. [Prov. End.]
2.
(Nautical) A string of oakum used in calking.
3.
(Medicine) A compress, or small flat tent of lint, laid over a wound, ulcer, or the like, to exclude air, retain dressings, or absorb the matter discharged.