frying pan
Americannoun
-
frying pans
plural
idioms
noun
-
a long-handled shallow pan used for frying
-
from a bad situation to a worse one
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of frying pan
1350–1400; Middle English fryinge panne
Compare meaning
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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.
The miracle everyone pulls off is making a poisonous relationship dryly hilarious, even if every civilized exchange eventually becomes a figurative frying pan flying through the air.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
From the frying pan to the fire, the Lakers now travel to Oklahoma City to face the defending champion Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals beginning Tuesday.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 2, 2026
Weather that swings from deep freeze to frying pan.
From Barron's ● Apr. 14, 2026
When you need a frying pan to cook fluffy omelets, a skillet to brown mushrooms, or a sheet pan for baking an afternoon treat of chocolate chip cookies, it’s tempting to reach for something nonstick.
From Salon ● Dec. 9, 2024
Behind them, a frying pan clanged as the last Mask slid to the floor.
From "The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm" by Nancy Farmer
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.
