noun
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articles, vessels, etc, made from earthenware and dried and baked in a kiln
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a place where such articles are made
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the craft or business of making such articles
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of pottery
Compare meaning
How does pottery compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Something made out of clay and baked in a kiln is a piece of pottery—and the craft of creating it is also pottery. You might make pottery in the arts and crafts tent at camp. Anything made from clay that's been fired, or baked at a high temperature in a kiln, is pottery. Some pottery is made on a wheel that turns while the potter forms the shape of a bowl or vase. Other pottery is formed with hands or tools that shape the clay. In the 15th century, a pottery was a potter's shed or studio.
Vocabulary lists containing pottery
The Stone Age - Middle School and High School
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The Stone Age - Introductory
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Sports and Hobbies
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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.
See Examples For:
Because pottery styles have changed over time, differerent styles are linked to particular periods.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
The stones from the drain along with fragments of pottery will be examined further by specialists.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
Mississippian potters of the period commonly mixed crushed freshwater shell or fragments of older pottery, known as grog, into their clay.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
That simpler technique became increasingly common as the region's population grew and could be learned quickly by people without advanced pottery experience.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
There are paintings and framed photographs all over the walls and glass boxes full of pottery and sculptures spread out all over the floor space.
From "Starfish" by Akemi Dawn Bowman
Stoneware potteries, coal mines, and steel mills mostly died off to be replaced by refineries, hazardous waste incinerators, unconventional gas wells, and petrochemical facilities.
From Salon ● Mar. 3, 2023
Sometime after the Emancipation Proclamation, he relocated to Texas, where he worked in potteries formed by other freedmen from Edgefield.
From New York Times ● Sep. 22, 2022
A range of jubilee teacups, mugs, plates and pillboxes is being produced in Stoke-on-Trent, England, where potteries have been making royal commemorative ware for generations.
From Washington Post ● May 31, 2022
For instance, a woman working in the potteries was fashioned from bowls, jugs and plates; while an apothecary had pill tins for feet.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2021
The North Devon potteries manufactured for export, sending their wares to Ireland as early as 1600 and to America by 1635.
From North Devon Pottery and Its Export to America in the 17th Century by C. Malcolm Watkins
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
