bottle

¹ American  

[bot-l] / ˈbɒt l /

noun

1. a portable container for holding liquids, characteristically having a neck and mouth and made of glass or plastic.

2. the contents of such a container; as much as such a container contains.

   a bottle of wine.

3. bottled cow's milk, milk formulas, or substitute mixtures given to infants instead of mother's milk.

   raised on the bottle.

4. the bottle, intoxicating beverages; liquor.

   He became addicted to the bottle.

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verb (used with object)

bottled, bottling

1. to put into or seal in a bottle.

   to bottle grape juice.

2. British. to preserve (fruit or vegetables) by heating to a sufficient temperature and then sealing in a jar.

verb phrase

1. bottle up

   1. to repress, control, or restrain.

      He kept all of his anger bottled up inside him.

   2. to enclose or entrap.

      Traffic was bottled up in the tunnel.

idioms

1. hit the bottle, to drink alcohol to excess often or habitually.

bottle ² American  

[bot-l] / ˈbɒt l /

noun

Architecture.

1. boltel.

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bottle ¹ British  

/ ˈbɒtəl /

noun

1. 1. a vessel, often of glass and typically cylindrical with a narrow neck that can be closed with a cap or cork, for containing liquids

   2. ( as modifier )

      a bottle rack

2. Also called: bottleful.  the amount such a vessel will hold

3. 1. a container equipped with a teat that holds a baby's milk or other liquid; nursing bottle

   2. the contents of such a container

      the baby drank his bottle

4. short for magnetic bottle

5. slang nerve; courage (esp in the phrase lose one's bottle )

6. slang money collected by street entertainers or buskers

7. slang well-informed and enthusiastic about something

8. informal drinking of alcohol, esp to excess

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verb

1. to put or place (wine, beer, jam, etc) in a bottle or bottles

2. to store (gas) in a portable container under pressure

3. slang to injure by thrusting a broken bottle into (a person)

4. slang (of a busker) to collect money from the bystanders

bottle ² British  

/ ˈbɒtəl /

noun

1. dialect a bundle, esp of hay

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bottle More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing bottle

• crack a bottle
• hit the bottle

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Other Word Forms

• bottlelike adjective
• well-bottled adjective

Etymology

Origin of bottle

1325–75; Middle English botel < Anglo-French; Old French bo ( u ) teille < Medieval Latin butticula, equivalent to Late Latin butti ( s ) butt ⁴ + -cula -cule ¹

Example Sentences

Another trend visible across social networks is one of growing emergency preparedness: people stockpiling canned food, torches and water bottles, and assembling emergency backpacks.

From BBC

A fourth group was shown a picture of a water bottle with the MTV brand and the phrase “overly dramatic.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Fingers gently graze against a shared water bottle.

From BBC

There were several champagne bottles in the room, I suppose for the refreshment of Morton—and as I entered the room a cork popped with a dreadful noise, and I made for the door terrified.

From Literature

She has been filling plastic bottles with hot water to keep warm.

From Barron's

Related Words

• glass
• jar
• jug
• urn
• vial