kettle

[ ket-l ]
/ ˈkɛt l /

noun

a metal container in which to boil liquids, cook foods, etc.; pot.
Geology. kettle hole.

Origin of kettle

before 900; Middle English ketel < Old Norse ketill ≪ Latin catillus, diminutive of catīnus pot; replacing Old English cetel, cietel ≪ Latin as above; compare German Kessel

Example sentences from the Web for kettle

British Dictionary definitions for kettle

kettle
/ (ˈkɛtəl) /

noun

a metal or plastic container with a handle and spout for boiling water
any of various metal containers for heating liquids, cooking fish, etc
a large metal vessel designed to withstand high temperatures, used in various industrial processes such as refining and brewing
British informal an enclosed space formed by a police cordon in order to contain people involved in a public demonstration
short for kettle hole

verb

(tr) British informal (of a police force) to contain (people involved in a public demonstration) in an enclosed space

Word Origin for kettle

C13: from Old Norse ketill; related to Old English cietel kettle, Old High German kezzil; all ultimately from Latin catillus a little pot, from catīnus pot

Scientific definitions for kettle

kettle
[ kĕtl ]

A steep, bowl-shaped hollow in ground once covered by a glacier. Kettles are believed to form when a block of ice left by a glacier becomes covered by sediments and later melts, leaving a hollow. They are usually tens of meters deep and up to tens of kilometers in diameter and often contain surface water.

Idioms and Phrases with kettle

kettle