barrel
Americannoun
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a cylindrical wooden container with slightly bulging sides made of staves hooped together, and with flat, parallel ends.
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the quantity that such a vessel of some standard size can hold: for most liquids, 31½ U.S. gallons (119 L); for petroleum, 42 U.S. gallons (159 L); for dry materials, 105 U.S. dry quarts (115 L). bbl
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any large quantity.
a barrel of fun.
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any container, case, or part similar to a wooden barrel in form.
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Ordnance. the tube of a gun.
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Machinery. the chamber of a pump in which the piston works.
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a drum turning on a shaft, as in a weight-driven clock.
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Horology. the cylindrical case in a watch or clock within which the mainspring is coiled.
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Ornithology Obsolete. a calamus or quill.
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the trunk of a quadruped, especially of a horse, cow, etc.
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Nautical. the main portion of a capstan, about which the rope winds, between the drumhead at the top and the pawl rim at the bottom.
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a rotating horizontal cylinder in which manufactured objects are coated or polished by tumbling in a suitable substance.
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any structure having the form of a barrel vault.
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Also called throat. Automotive. a passageway in a carburetor that has the shape of a Venturi tube.
verb (used with object)
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to put or pack in a barrel or barrels.
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to finish (metal parts) by tumbling in a barrel.
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Informal. to force to go or proceed at high speed.
He barreled his car through the dense traffic.
verb (used without object)
idioms
noun
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a cylindrical container usually bulging outwards in the middle and held together by metal hoops; cask
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Also called: barrelful. the amount that a barrel can hold
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a unit of capacity used in brewing, equal to 36 Imperial gallons
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a unit of capacity used in the oil and other industries, normally equal to 42 US gallons or 35 Imperial gallons
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a thing or part shaped like a barrel, esp a tubular part of a machine
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the tube through which the projectile of a firearm is discharged
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horology the cylindrical drum in a watch or clock that is rotated by the mainspring
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the trunk of a four-legged animal
the barrel of a horse
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the quill of a feather
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informal a large measure; a great deal (esp in the phrases barrel of fun, barrel of laughs )
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informal the hollow inner side of a wave
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informal powerless
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informal to be forced to use one's last and weakest resource
verb
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(tr) to put into a barrel or barrels
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informal (intr; foll by along, in, etc) (intr) to travel or move very fast
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informal to ride on the inside of a wave
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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barrelsimple
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barrelssimple
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have barreledperfect
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have barrelledperfect
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has barreledperfect
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has barrelledperfect
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am barrelingprogressive
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am barrellingprogressive
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are barrelingprogressive
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are barrellingprogressive
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is barrelingprogressive
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is barrellingprogressive
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have been barrelingperfect progressive
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have been barrellingperfect progressive
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has been barrelingperfect progressive
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has been barrellingperfect progressive
Past
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barreledsimple
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barrelledsimple
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had barreledperfect
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had barrelledperfect
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was barrelingprogressive
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was barrellingprogressive
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were barrelingprogressive
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were barrellingprogressive
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had been barrelingperfect progressive
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had been barrellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of barrel
1250–1300; Middle English barell < Anglo-French baril, Old French barril < Vulgar Latin *barrīculum, equivalent to *barrīc ( a ), perhaps derivative of Late Latin barra bar 1 + Latin -ulum -ule; compare Medieval Latin (circa 800) barriclus small cask
Explanation
A barrel is a big container used to store liquids. If you're moving a barrel, it's best to tip it on its side because its shape bulges at the center, so that it's easy to roll. Barrels hold liquid in them — anything from wine to beer to oil. A barrel can also be the tube in a gun that a bullet travels through. You might hear the expression "stare down the barrel of a gun," which means you're looking at a gun pointed right at your face. A barrel is also used as a unit of measure or to refer to a large unit of measure. When someone says they are having "barrels of fun," they're having a really great time.
Vocabulary lists containing barrel
Out of the Dust
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"After Apple-Picking" by Robert Frost
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I Survived the Children's Blizzard, 1888
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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:
On Wednesday, Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil prices rose by more than 6% to above $89 a barrel.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
Tight supplies of middle distillates have pushed the ICE gasoil crack spread—the premium refiners earn by turning crude oil into diesel and other middle-distillate fuels—above $70 a barrel, according to ING.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
Traditionally, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries has used production quotas to move the oil price, with U.S. shale producers adding supply once prices went above roughly $65 a barrel.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
Raising rates would only suppress demand without producing another barrel of oil or improving the weather.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
The half barrel floated into the parking lot.
From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein
Inventories were at 1.07 billion barrels early last year when the Chinese government announced a major stockpiling drive.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
VLCCs are the 18-wheelers of the crude world, able to carry about 2 million barrels of oil; Suezmax ships carry half of that.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
Distillate fuel stocks rose by 1.1 million barrels to 110.6 million barrels against expectations of a 300,000 barrel decline, and were about 9% below the five-year average for the time of year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
Even after that length of time, China would still have close to 1.1 billion barrels of crude remaining in storage—a mixture of refinery and commercial stocks and the country’s strategic petroleum reserve.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
All the barrels have to do is raise the boat clear of the bottom, then I can pull the bow onto shore.
From "The Young Man and the Sea" by Rodman Philbrick
“Overall, I thought we had some good at-bats and barreled up some balls,” Dodgers right fielder Kyle Tucker said after a 4-1 loss.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2026
But the aircraft leasing firms that own dozens of its bright yellow jets were getting anxious as Spirit barreled toward liquidation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026
Eastern time Sunday as a winter storm barreled across the Midwest.
From Barron's ● Mar. 15, 2026
She was cut off when a giant inflatable baby barreled into them.
From Slate ● Oct. 19, 2025
Lexie turned to go, but Izzy barreled ahead.
From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
Police are investigating a dramatic crash Tuesday where an SUV drove onto the sidewalk and barrelled into a vendor in downtown Los Angeles’ flower district, injuring six people.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 25, 2026
The American had the crowd on his side but Zverev's serve was unrelenting and he barrelled into a 5-1 lead in the third set.
From Barron's ● Jan. 27, 2026
Will Smith barrelled up a splitter Gausman left just high enough to trade places with Edman on an RBI double to left.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2025
There, McIlroy missed two short putts on holes 16 and 18 to open the door for DeChambeau, who barrelled through in typically raucous fashion.
From BBC ● Apr. 13, 2025
As the dog-headed men barrelled forward, Nico raised his sword.
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
You don’t need to be rich to burn the road behind you to the point of no return, just confident enough to keep barreling forward.
From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2026
About 20% of Edinburgh Worldwide is invested in the rocket company, which is barreling toward what is expected to be one of the largest initial public offerings of all time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
And the Bruins aren’t barreling toward it with the same momentum as the teams they’re likely to face.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2026
Airlines canceled thousands of flights because of a winter storm barreling up the East Coast, but that’s not the only thing spreading chaos across the air travel industry.
From Barron's ● Feb. 23, 2026
Someone barreling through the throngs bumped her hard to the right, which caused someone else to yell at her to watch where she was going.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
And so, on we go, barrelling toward the next general election, which must take place by 2029 but will likely be sooner.
From Slate ● Jun. 23, 2026
Some rushing made sense — deadlines, the Red Line train barrelling toward the platform — but other times, it was just habit.
From Salon ● Feb. 9, 2025
Some 80 surfers could work different waves simultaneously: barrelling waves, big waves, kid-friendly waves, Knieriem said.
From Washington Times ● May 29, 2023
It followed a looping path rarely recorded by meteorologists, hitting Madagascar and Mozambique for the first time at the end of February, and then again in March before barrelling into Malawi.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 2, 2023
The walls shifted and Leo saw her barrelling towards them in her chariot.
From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
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.
