jug
1 Americannoun
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a large container usually made of earthenware, metal, or glass, commonly having a handle, a narrow neck, and sometimes a cap or cork.
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the contents of such a container; jugful.
a jug of wine.
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Slang: Vulgar. jugs, a woman's breasts.
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Slang. bank.
Yeah, I drove him, but I didn't know he went in the jug to rob the place.
verb (used with object)
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to put into a jug.
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to stew (meat) in an earthenware jug.
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Slang. to put in jail; imprison.
noun
verb (used without object)
noun
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US equivalent: pitcher. a vessel for holding or pouring liquids, usually having a handle and a spout or lip
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such a vessel used as a kettle
an electric jug
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a large vessel with a narrow mouth
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Also called: jugful. the amount of liquid held by a jug
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informal a glass of alcoholic drink, esp beer
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a slang word for jail
verb
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to stew or boil (meat, esp hare) in an earthenware container
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slang (tr) to put in jail
Etymology
Origin of jug1
First recorded in 1530–40; perhaps special use of Jug, diminutive or pet name of Joan, a woman's name
Origin of jug2
First recorded in 1515–25; imitative
Explanation
Many people buy their milk in a jug, a large container with a handle and a small opening at the top. A jug usually has a fairly small spout or mouth at the top; a gallon milk container is one kind of jug, usually made of plastic. Other jugs are made of clay or glass. In some countries, beer comes in a jug, and in others water is collected and carried in a jug. Earthenware jugs can actually be played as musical instruments, often in a jug band — the player blows across the opening and holds the jug at different angles.
Vocabulary lists containing jug
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:
Within the exhibition halls, a bedroom, living room and kitchen -- complete with a glass jug, coffee pot, and spice containers -- recreate details of daily life in the homes of southern Lebanese residents.
From Barron's ● Jul. 19, 2026
The teen behind the lawsuit told The Times he remembers one of his classmates getting sick after drinking from the same jug.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026
Each time a downpour begins, Scott strips down to the waist, grabs a large glass jug, and runs out to one of three drainpipes to collect enough water to last the week.
From Slate ● Mar. 30, 2026
In 2025, the Starmer jug sold most, at 116, including 32 to his colleagues in parliament and further 84 online.
From BBC ● Mar. 20, 2026
“Drink,” he says, pushing the jug at me again.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
Others include jugged hare and flummery - an oat-based fermented jelly, associated with farmhouse production and poverty.
From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026
Without tannins, cider can taste flabby, one-dimensional, limp—and in need of flavorings to mask the fact that it tastes like, well, jugged juice.
From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2016
So well did he succeed in annoying two prominent New Yorkers, Jay Gould and Jim Fiske, that a crooked Tammany judge jugged him.
From Time Magazine Archive
Sixty years after Teller William Sydney Porter was jugged for embezzling $854.08 from an Austin bank, the Texas Heritage Foundation asked the President for a posthumous pardon.
From Time Magazine Archive
People’s mouths moved, their feet moved, a car jugged by—but with no sound.
From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison
According to the FBI, jugging has surged during the pandemic.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 27, 2022
According to a recent report from ABC’s “Good Morning America,” the city of Austin has had 84 jugging cases this year.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 27, 2022
When the Marathon was three-fourths finished, he was just an obscure also-ran, jugging along in tenth place, eighth place.
From Time Magazine Archive
“You don’t want that brass falling out, and them tracing you down here and jugging you–you fool,” she panted as she climbed to the ground.
From In the Heart of a Fool by White, William Allen
Well, after "jugging" Stoneman, we go back to Atlanta and occupy our same old place near the concrete house.
From "Co. Aytch" Maury Grays, First Tennessee Regiment or, A Side Show of the Big Show by Watkins, Sam R.
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.
