faucet
Americannoun
-
faucets
plural
noun
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a tap fitted to a barrel
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Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): tap. a valve by which a fluid flow from a pipe can be controlled by opening and closing an orifice
Regionalisms
Spigot is a common variant for faucet and is widely used in the Midland U.S. Elsewhere, faucet is more commonly used, especially in the Northern U.S.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of faucet
1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French fausset peg for a vent, perhaps equivalent to fauss ( er ) to force in, damage, warp, literally, to falsify (< Late Latin falsāre; see false) + -et -et
Explanation
Water comes out of your faucet and into your sink or bathtub. A faucet is a device that allows you to turn the flow of water on and off. The faucet is not just the metal part that the water comes through, it is the whole mechanism for controlling the flow of water. If you cry easily, someone might say you are a regular faucet. This is because water comes out of your eyes more often than it does for most people. If you ask your parents a little too often for cash, they might joke that they're going to turn off the money faucet.
Vocabulary lists containing faucet
Unit 15, Lessons 1–2
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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:
Turning off the faucet: Antiretroviral therapy doesn't eliminate HIV altogether, but it minimizes its ability to replicate.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 13, 2026
“Even if the strait were to effectively open tomorrow, you can’t turn the faucet back on,” Angie Gildea, global head of oil and gas at KPMG, told MarketWatch in March.
From MarketWatch ● May 24, 2026
“Even if there is a good resolution, this isn’t a faucet that can turn back on. We don’t have a peace button you can push to restart those wells.”
From Barron's ● Apr. 15, 2026
Unlike a kitchen faucet, an oil tap isn’t easy to turn back on.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 8, 2026
She rushed to the faucet to let cold water run over her burning hands.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
For the hardware, the couple will be replacing the existing silver-toned metal with gold, including new faucets, new drawer handles, and new knobs for the cupboards.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 8, 2026
Its biggest rival Masco, which makes Delta faucets, is up close to 40% over that time period.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026
Where aquifer levels decline, wells and faucets increasingly sputter and run dry, people drill deeper and the land can sink as underground spaces collapse.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2025
Forgiveness can be a one-person endeavor, but anger and sorrow aren’t faucets that turn off with a pardon.
From Salon ● Dec. 14, 2024
He turns both faucets on full blast, puts one arm underneath, then the other, scrubbing both with industrial soap.
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
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.
