ladle
Americannoun
-
a long-handled utensil with a cup-shaped bowl for dipping or conveying liquids.
-
Metallurgy. a bucketlike, refractory-lined container for transferring molten metal.
verb (used with object)
noun
-
a long-handled spoon having a deep bowl for serving or transferring liquids
a soup ladle
-
a large bucket-shaped container for transferring molten metal
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
have ladledperfect
-
has ladledperfect 3rd person singular
-
ladlingparticiple
-
ladlessingular 3rd person
-
have been ladlingperfect progressive
-
am ladlingprogressive 1st person singular
-
is ladlingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
are ladlingprogressive
-
has been ladlingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
Past
-
had ladledperfect
-
was ladlingprogressive singular
-
had been ladlingperfect progressive
-
ladledsimple
-
ladledparticiple
-
were ladlingprogressive plural
Future
Etymology
Origin of ladle
before 1000; Middle English ladel, Old English hlædel. See lade, -le
Explanation
A ladle is a large spoon with a deep bowl for scooping and serving soup and other liquids. If you make clam chowder, it might be messy to serve it without using a ladle. The serving implement is called a ladle, and you can also use this word as a verb: "Will you ladle some of that tomato soup into my bowl?" The Old English version was hlædel, from hladan, "to load," plus the "tool" suffix -le (like in thimble or handle).
Vocabulary lists containing ladle
Pestle, Sieve, and Whisk: Useful Words for Cooking Tools
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Orbiting Jupiter
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Other Words for Home
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Having won the silver ladle himself in 2018, Spruit knows what it takes to make a sensational snert.
From Barron's • Feb. 19, 2026
The movie purports to dip into the deep well of Shakespearean magnificence but emerges only with a ladle full of greasy schmaltz.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 27, 2025
Options: Add cream to soup and heat gently before serving, or ladle into individual bowls then lightly stir in a couple of tablespoons of cream into each bowl.
From Salon • Nov. 7, 2024
“For all you non-Jews out there, a kochleffel is a ladle, a ladle that stirs the pot. And when Norman, the kochleffel, stirred that pot, he wound up changing American culture.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 15, 2024
Ear helped himself to garlic soup and passed the ladle to Eye.
From "The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm" by Nancy Farmer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
