keg
Americannoun
-
a small cask or barrel, usually holding from 5 to 10 gallons (19 to 38 liters).
-
a unit of weight, equal to 100 pounds (45 kilograms), used for nails.
-
Also kegger. a keg party; beer bust.
noun
-
a small barrel with a capacity of between five and ten gallons
-
-
an aluminium container in which beer is transported and stored
-
Also called: keg beer. beer kept in a keg: it is infused with gas and served under pressure
-
Etymology
Origin of keg
1585–95; earlier cag < Old Norse kaggi
Explanation
A keg is a metal container for liquids, especially beer. A keg typically holds less than thirty gallons. Bars and pubs have plenty of kegs, each containing different brands and types of beer, and occasionally they'll also have kegs of root beer or other soft drinks. When a large quantity of carbonated liquid is needed, a keg works well because it keeps its contents under pressure. The original kegs were made of wood, and in addition to beverages, they also held things like gunpowder and nails. Keg comes from the Old Norse kaggi, "cask or keg."
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.
In 1768 King George III filled Boston with armed troops, creating a powder keg; in two years the spark of a single rifle shot would explode the Boston Massacre.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026
The career soldier, who in 2021 collaborated with Daglo to oust civilians from a transitional government, wrote on Wednesday: "I long recognised that the RSF was a powder keg."
From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025
For Crudup, Timothy isn’t a bitter powder keg but a man looking for a little closure, someone who has made peace with the past until the moment he doesn’t get the apology he’s expecting.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 7, 2025
Dahlia Lithwick: I find the public-facing discourse around shootings to be impoverished, dangerous, and a powder keg on its own terms.
From Slate • Sep. 12, 2025
I said, “I must have water, Timothy. I’m very hot” Without answering, he opened the trap in the raft and secured the keg again.
From "The Cay" by Theodore Taylor
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.
