amphora
a large two-handled storage jar having an oval body, usually tapering to a point at the base, with a pair of handles extending from immediately below the lip to the shoulder: used chiefly for oil, wine, etc., and, set on a foot, as a commemorative vase awarded the victors in contests such as the Panathenaic games.
Origin of amphora
1Other words from amphora
- am·pho·ral, adjective
Words Nearby amphora
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use amphora in a sentence
Back and forth from Libya to the south, to Sicily and Rome to the east, sail-driven merchant vessels carried olive oil, cheeses, charcuterie and wine often stored in massive terra-cotta amphoras.
In France, Narbonne takes a turn in the international spotlight | Sylvie Bigar | October 29, 2021 | Washington PostThe arak is then rested for several months in locally made clay amphora—clay pots traditionally used for arak production in a region where oak was scarce.
Reinventing the World’s Oldest Spirit for the Modern Drinker | Wayne Curtis | June 7, 2021 | The Daily BeastSome of the blend spent some of that time in cement egg-shaped vessels and terra-cotta amphorae.
This $14 Italian red is a gem that invites a pairing with a pot roast or pasta | Dave McIntyre | February 12, 2021 | Washington PostAnd by the time the last American troops pulled out in 2011, the Iraqi amphora might not have looked like new.
Iraq Is Not Our War Anymore. Let It Be Iran’s Problem. | Christopher Dickey | July 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe first vase in the engraving on the following page, which is exactly the shape of the classic amphora, is over three feet high.
The Catacombs of Rome | William Henry Withrow
Two slaves carrying a great amphora hanging from a pole swung between their shoulders, stopped near them a moment to rest.
Snnica | Vicente Blasco IbezFlies buzzed about their heads in clouds; an amphora of water stood within their reach.
Snnica | Vicente Blasco IbezBy this point the amphora was fastened into the soft earth, or the holes in the tap-room counters specially intended for them.
Quintus Claudius, Volume 2 of 2 | Ernst EcksteinHere allusion is made to a hole in the stone floor designed to secure the amphora.
Quintus Claudius, Volume 2 of 2 | Ernst Eckstein
British Dictionary definitions for amphora
/ (ˈæmfərə) /
an ancient Greek or Roman two-handled narrow-necked jar for oil, wine, etc
Origin of amphora
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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