ashcan

[ ash-kan ]

See synonyms for ashcan on Thesaurus.com

noun

a large metal barrel, can, or similar receptacle for ashes, garbage, or refuse.
Slang. a depth charge.

Movies. an arc light of 1000 watts, enclosed in a reflector.

Origin of ashcan

First recorded in 1895–1900; ash¹ + can²

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ashcan in a sentence

The tank, a galvanized-iron ash-can, is provided with a conical top, through an opening in which a funnel is placed.
Respiration Calorimeters for Studying the Respiratory Exchange and Energy Transformations of Man | Francis Gano Benedict
Now take that thing out of the dining-room and throw it in the ash-can!
Penrod | Booth Tarkington
Aurora believed it had been recovered from the ash-can, and her breast was filled with awe.
Aurora the Magnificent | Gertrude Hall
She was as plebeian as an ash-can and as full of old embers.
The Cup of Fury | Rupert Hughes
One of our destroyers hopped to twenty-five knots, dumped over a 300-pound "ash-can," and got Mister U-boat.
The U-boat hunters | James B. Connolly

British Dictionary definitions for ash can

ash can

noun

a US word for dustbin Also called: garbage can, ash bin, trash can

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Browse