kettle

American  

[ket-l] / ˈkɛt l /

noun

1. a metal container in which to boil liquids, cook foods, etc.; pot.

2. a teakettle.

3. a kettledrum.

4. Geology. kettle hole.

5. an enclosed area to which demonstrators are herded for containment by police.

   Journalists were the first to be allowed to leave the kettle.

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verb (used with object)

1. to surround and contain (demonstrators) in an enclosed area.

   Most demonstrators were too distracted to notice they were being kettled.

kettle British  

/ ˈkɛtəl /

noun

1. a metal or plastic container with a handle and spout for boiling water

2. any of various metal containers for heating liquids, cooking fish, etc

3. a large metal vessel designed to withstand high temperatures, used in various industrial processes such as refining and brewing

4. informal an enclosed space formed by a police cordon in order to contain people involved in a public demonstration

5. short for kettle hole

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verb

1. informal (tr) (of a police force) to contain (people involved in a public demonstration) in an enclosed space

kettle Scientific  

/ kĕt′l /

1. A steep, bowl-shaped hollow in ground once covered by a glacier. Kettles are believed to form when a block of ice left by a glacier becomes covered by sediments and later melts, leaving a hollow. They are usually tens of meters deep and up to tens of kilometers in diameter and often contain surface water.

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kettle Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing kettle

• pot calling the kettle black

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Etymology

Origin of kettle

First recorded before 900; Middle English ketel, from Old Norse ketill, ultimately derived from Latin catillus, diminutive of catīnus “pot”; replacing Old English cetel, cietel, ultimately from Latin as above; compare German Kessel

Example Sentences

Green beans and other sides were prepared in ovens instead of traditional stovetop kettles, and food was reheated when needed.

From The Wall Street Journal

It was now cheaper to boil a full kettle than it was to fill a washing up bowl with warm water, according to residents in Woodall and Hamilton House, in Bloxwich, Walsall.

From BBC

Dodds responded to the criticism from the UUP on BBC One's The View, saying: "Pot, kettle, and black comes to mind."

From BBC

Weber Master-Touch Charcoal Grill 26” – I love grilling, and at the end of the day, there’s nothing quite like a good old Weber kettle grill.

From Salon

Don't overfill your kettle: only boil what you need.

From BBC

Related Words

• boiler
• cauldron
• pot
• steamer