cup
a small, open container made of china, glass, metal, etc., usually having a handle and used chiefly as a receptable from which to drink tea, soup, etc.
the bowllike part of a goblet or the like.
a cup with its contents.
the quantity contained in a cup.
a unit of capacity, equal to 8 fluid ounces (237 milliliters) or 16 tablespoons; half-pint.
an ornamental bowl, vase, etc., especially of precious metal, offered as a prize for a contest.
any of various beverages, as a mixture of wine and various ingredients: claret cup.
the chalice used in the Eucharist.
the wine of the Eucharist.
something to be partaken of or endured; one's portion, as of joy or suffering.
any cuplike utensil, organ, part, cavity, etc.
either of the two forms that cover and usually support the breasts in a brassiere or other garment, as a bathing suit.
an athletic supporter reinforced with rigid plastic or metal for added protection.
Golf.
the metal receptacle within the hole.
the hole itself.
Cup, Astronomy. the constellation Crater.
Metalworking. a cylindrical shell closed at one end, especially one produced in the first stages of a deep-drawing operation.
Mathematics. the cuplike symbol ∪, used to indicate the union of two sets.: Compare union (def. 10a).
cups, Archaic. the drinking of intoxicating liquors.
to take or place in, or as in, a cup: He cupped his ear with the palm of his hand.
to form into a cuplike shape: He cupped his hands.
to use a cupping glass on.
Metalworking. to form (tubing, containers, etc.) by punching hot strip or sheet metal and drawing it through a die.: Compare deep-draw.
Idioms about cup
in one's cups, intoxicated; drunk.
Origin of cup
1Other words from cup
- cuplike, adjective
- un·der·cup, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use cup in a sentence
One and all, they come shaking their tin cups at election time then run like the wind when a critical vote comes up.
As Victoria was buying pots and tea cups Monday, she told the middle-age shop assistants she was purchasing them for the ATO.
Mormons sip from cups of water, Catholics from chalices of wine.
The Midichlorians Made Me Do It: Can Microbes Explain Religion? | Michael Schulson | August 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIn a pan, cook potatoes and add chocolate powder, chocolate chip pieces, and chocolate peanut butter cups.
Epic Meal Empire’s Meat Monstrosities: From the Bacon Spider to the Cinnabattleship | Harley Morenstein | July 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBehind glass doors it displayed an assortment of glasses, stacked tea cups; a small row of books; a bouquet of fake flowers.
Those varieties of the plant with heart-shaped leaves have paniculated flowers with unequal cups.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.These gorgeous tea-cups were never used but on high-days and holidays, or on the advent of any particular visitors.
The World Before Them | Susanna MoodieThis tribute to their feelings so tickled the women that they set down their tea-cups and laughed prodigiously.
The Garret and the Garden | R.M. BallantyneMr. Giles, who had been feverishly putting the tea-cups to rights, blushed very red, and said that he had had that honour.
Oliver Twist, Vol. II (of 3) | Charles DickensOh, I forgot to tell you, cried Dinah, standing still with two cups in her hands.
Tessa Wadsworth's Discipline | Jennie M. Drinkwater
British Dictionary definitions for cup
/ (kʌp) /
a small open container, usually having one handle, used for drinking from
the contents of such a container: that cup was too sweet
Also called: teacup, cupful a unit of capacity used in cooking equal to approximately half a pint, 8 fluid ounces, or about one quarter of a litre
something resembling a cup in shape or function, such as the flower base of some plants of the rose family or a cuplike bodily organ
either of two cup-shaped parts of a brassiere, designed to support the breasts
a cup-shaped trophy awarded as a prize
British
a sporting contest in which a cup is awarded to the winner
(as modifier): a cup competition
a mixed drink with one ingredient as a base, usually served from a bowl: claret cup
golf the hole or metal container in the hole on a green
the chalice or the consecrated wine used in the Eucharist
one's lot in life
in one's cups drunk
one's cup of tea informal one's chosen or preferred thing, task, company, etc: she's not my cup of tea
to form (something, such as the hands) into the shape of a cup
to put into or as if into a cup
archaic to draw blood to the surface of the body of (a person) by using a cupping glass
Origin of cup
1Derived forms of cup
- cuplike, adjective
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with cup
In addition to the idiom beginning with cup
- cup of tea, one's
also see:
- in one's cups
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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