pool

1
[ pool ]
See synonyms for: poolpooledpooling on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. a small body of standing water; pond.

  2. a still, deep place in a stream.

  1. any small collection of liquid on a surface: a pool of blood.

  2. a puddle.

  3. a subterranean accumulation of oil or gas held in porous and permeable sedimentary rock (reservoir ).

verb (used without object)
  1. to form a pool.

  2. (of blood) to accumulate in a body part or organ.

verb (used with object)
  1. to cause pools to form in.

  2. to cause (blood) to form pools.

adjective
  1. of or for a pool: pool filters.

  2. taking place or occurring around or near a pool: a pool party.

Origin of pool

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English pol, pole, Old English pōl; cognate with Dutch poel, German Pfuhl

Words Nearby pool

Other definitions for pool (2 of 2)

pool2
[ pool ]

noun
  1. Also called pocket billiards . any of various games played on a pool table with a cue ball and 15 other balls that are usually numbered, in which the object is to drive all the balls into the pockets with the cue ball.: Compare billiards.

  2. the total amount staked by a combination of bettors, as on a race, to be awarded to the successful bettor or bettors.

  1. the combination of such bettors.

  2. an association of competitors who agree to control the production, market, and price of a commodity for mutual benefit, although they appear to be rivals.

  3. Finance. a combination of persons or organizations for the purpose of manipulating the prices of securities.

  4. a combination of resources, funds, etc., for common advantage.

  5. the combined interests or funds.

  6. a facility, resource, or service that is shared by a group of people: a car pool;The Psychology department has built up a large participant pool for experiments.

  7. the persons or parties involved.

  8. the stakes in certain games.

  9. British. a billiard game.

  10. Fencing. a match in which each teammate successively plays against each member of the opposing team.

verb (used with object)
  1. to put (resources, money, etc.) into a pool, or common stock or fund, as for a financial venture, according to agreement.

  2. to form a pool of.

  1. to make a common interest of.

verb (used without object)
  1. to enter into or form a pool.

adjective
  1. of or belonging to a pool: a pool reporter;Pool research assistants will be assigned to code and enter the data.

Origin of pool

2
First recorded in 1685–95; from French poule “collective stakes in a game,” literally, “hen”; see origin at pullet

Other words for pool

Other words from pool

  • pooler, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use pool in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pool (1 of 2)

pool1

/ (puːl) /


noun
  1. a small body of still water, usually fresh; small pond

  2. a small isolated collection of liquid spilt or poured on a surface; puddle: a pool of blood

  1. a deep part of a stream or river where the water runs very slowly

  2. an underground accumulation of oil or gas, usually forming a reservoir in porous sedimentary rock

Origin of pool

1
Old English pōl; related to Old Frisian pōl, German Pfuhl

British Dictionary definitions for pool (2 of 2)

pool2

/ (puːl) /


noun
  1. any communal combination of resources, funds, etc: a typing pool

  2. the combined stakes of the betters in many gambling sports or games; kitty

  1. commerce a group of producers who conspire to establish and maintain output levels and high prices, each member of the group being allocated a maximum quota; price ring

  2. finance, mainly US

    • a joint fund organized by security-holders for speculative or manipulative purposes on financial markets

    • the persons or parties involved in such a combination

  3. any of various billiard games in which the object is to pot all the balls with the cue ball, esp that played with 15 coloured and numbered balls; pocket billiards

verb(tr)
  1. to combine (investments, money, interests, etc) into a common fund, as for a joint enterprise

  2. commerce to organize a pool of (enterprises)

  1. Australian informal to inform on or incriminate (someone)

Origin of pool

2
C17: from French poule, literally: hen used to signify stakes in a card game, from Medieval Latin pulla hen, from Latin pullus young animal

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012