cupful
Americannoun
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the amount a cup can hold.
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Cooking. a volumetric measure equal to 8 fluid ounces (237 milliliters); half pint.
Spelling
See -ful.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cupful
First recorded in 1350–1400, cupful is from the Middle English word cuppefulle. See cup, -ful
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 a recent afternoon, Gérald poured less than a cupful of cooking oil into an old water bottle and handed it to a young boy.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 8, 2024
Each child participated, lowering a cupful into the water and tipping it until the eggs tumbled out and settled on a metal screen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2022
"A simple-minded but perfect way to master the movement is to practice outdoors with half a cupful of dried beans."
From Salon ● Apr. 12, 2022
Used by the pinch or by the cupful, a harmonious spice blend can deepen and round out the flavors of almost any dish, instantly adding color, perfume and, sometimes, a stinging kick.
From New York Times ● Feb. 22, 2021
Once he woke and asked again for water; I gave him a cupful.
From "Z for Zachariah" by Robert C. O’Brien
Because, he explains, "with all our knowledge of chemistry we could not produce a meal from a few cupfuls of chalk and salt."
From Scientific American ● Sep. 16, 2019
The key is to think of herbs — particularly the tender ones — not as accents used in mere tablespoons but rather as star players tossed in by fistfuls and cupfuls.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 5, 2019
People waited patiently for nearly two hours for a shot at the chili bowls and the fried chicken sandwiches, the flat bean-filled tacos called "foldies" and the cupfuls of stewed collard greens.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 23, 2016
The crowd leaned over creaking police barricades to snatch cupfuls of free gelato given out along the parade route.
From New York Times ● Oct. 12, 2015
We leapt after her and watched as she dipped cupfuls of filthy water into the thermos.
From "Tasting the Sky" by Ibtisam Barakat
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.
