pool

[ pool ]

/ pul /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pool ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a small body of standing water; pond.

a still, deep place in a stream.

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

a puddle.

swimming pool.

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

verb (used without object)

to form a pool.

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

verb (used with object)

to cause pools to form in.

to cause (blood) to form pools.

adjective

of or for a pool: pool filters.

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

Nearby words

pooh bah, pooh-bah, pooh-pooh, pook, pooka, pool, pool hall, pool malebo, pool table, pool train, poole

Origin of pool

before 900; Middle English; Old English pōl; cognate with Dutch poel, German Pfuhl

Definition for pool (2 of 2)

pool

[ pool ]

/ pul /

noun

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.

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

the combination of such bettors.

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.

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

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

the combined interests or funds.

a facility, resource, or service that is shared by a group of people: a car pool; a typing pool.

the persons or parties involved.

the stakes in certain games.

British. a billiard game.

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

verb (used with object)

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

to form a pool of.

to make a common interest of.

verb (used without object)

to enter into or form a pool.

adjective

of or belonging to a pool: a pool typist; a pool reporter.

Origin of pool

First recorded in 1685–95, pool is from the French word poule stakes, literally, hen. See pullet

SYNONYMS FOR pool

4 corner, monopoly.

13 combine, merge, consolidate.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pool ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formspool·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pool

In the course of her remarkable travels Thecla baptizes herself by diving into a pool of “man-eating seals.”
First Anglican Woman Bishop A Return to Christian Roots|Candida Moss|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Unlike the Campus Sexual Assault Study, the pool of respondents was national.
Fact-Checking the Sunday Shows: Dec. 7|PunditFact.com|December 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So this pool cleaner would always come around and talk to her, and I figured it would be a good idea for a movie.
The Renegade: Robert Downey Sr. on His Classic Films, Son’s Battle with Drugs, and Bill Cosby|Marlow Stern|November 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Another unknown is how many from that pool will eventually qualify.
Will 5 Million Undocumented Immigrants Take Obama's Tough Love Immigration Deal?|Ruben Navarrette Jr.|November 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST

The police found six eyewitnesses who reported seeing Anthony Porter at the pool that night and named him as the killer.
Wrongly Imprisoned for 15 Years Thanks to an Innocence Project|Jacob Siegel|November 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The pool will spring upon the market, right and left, selling thousands upon thousands of shares.
The President|Alfred Henry Lewis
Across the entrance the floor sloped up to the rocky ridge, of which Mr. Rogers had spoken; and beyond the ridge lay the pool.
Major Vigoureux|A. T. Quiller-Couch
Any member shooting at pool or practice between shots of a score shall forfeit the score.
The Modern American Pistol and Revolver|A. C. Gould
It vanished into the unknown air; and the master of the pool quailed as he marked its fate.
The Watchers of the Trails|Charles G. D. Roberts
Once he slipped in a pool of blood and went down, his companion falling across him.
In the Name of Liberty|Owen Johnson

British Dictionary definitions for pool (1 of 2)

pool

/ (puːl) /

noun

a small body of still water, usually fresh; small pond

a small isolated collection of liquid spilt or poured on a surface; puddlea pool of blood

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

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

See swimming pool

Word Origin for pool

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

British Dictionary definitions for pool (2 of 2)

pool

/ (puːl) /

noun

any communal combination of resources, funds, etca typing pool

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

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

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

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)

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

commerce to organize a pool of (enterprises)

Australian informal to inform on or incriminate (someone)

Word Origin for pool

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

Word Origin and History for pool (1 of 4)

pool

n.1

"small body of water," Old English pol "small body of water; deep, still place in a river," from West Germanic *pol- (cf. Old Frisian and Middle Low German pol, Dutch poel, Old High German pfuol, German Pfuhl). As a short form of swimming pool it is recorded from 1901. Pool party is from 1965.

Word Origin and History for pool (1 of 4)

pool

n.2

game similar to billiards, 1848, originally (1690s) a card game played for collective stakes (a "pool"), from French poule "stakes, booty, plunder," literally "hen," from Old French poille "hen, young fowl" (see foal (n.)).

Perhaps the original notion is from jeu de la poule, supposedly a game in which people threw things at a chicken and the player who hit it, won it, which speaks volumes about life in the Middle Ages. The notion behind the word, then, is "playing for money." The connection of "hen" and "stakes" is also present in Spanish polla and Walloon paie.

Meaning "collective stakes" in betting first recorded 1869; sense of "common reservoir of resources" is from 1917. Meaning "group of persons who share duties or skills" is from 1928. From 1933 as short for football pool in wagering. Pool shark is from 1898. The phrase dirty pool "underhanded or unsportsmanlike conduct," especially in politics (1951), seems to belong here now, but the phrase dirty pool of politics, with an image of pool (n.1) is recorded from 1871 and was in use early 20c.

Word Origin and History for pool (2 of 4)

pool

v.1

"to make a common interest, put things into a pool," 1871, from pool (n.2). Related: Pooled; pooling.

Word Origin and History for pool (3 of 4)

pool

v.2

of liquid, "to form a pool or pools," 1620s, from pool (n.1).

Medicine definitions for pool

pool

[ pōōl ]

n.

A collection of blood in any region of the body due to dilation and retardation of the circulation in capillaries and veins.

pool

noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

adjective

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of pool

Definition for pool (2 of 2)

pool

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

adjective

Origin of pool

Examples from the Web for pool

British Dictionary definitions for pool (1 of 2)

pool

noun

Word Origin for pool

British Dictionary definitions for pool (2 of 2)

pool

noun

verb (tr)

Word Origin for pool

Word Origin and History for pool (1 of 4)

pool

Word Origin and History for pool (1 of 4)

pool

Word Origin and History for pool (2 of 4)

pool

Word Origin and History for pool (3 of 4)

pool

Medicine definitions for pool

pool

n.