pot

[ pot ]

/ pɒt /

Save This Word!

noun

a container of earthenware, metal, etc., usually round and deep and having a handle or handles and often a lid, used for cooking, serving, and other purposes.

such a container with its contents: a pot of stew.

the amount contained in or held by a pot; potful.

a flowerpot.

a container of liquor or other drink: a pot of ale.

liquor or other drink.

a cagelike vessel for trapping fish, lobsters, eels, etc., typically made of wood, wicker, or wire.Compare lobster pot.

a chamber pot.

Metallurgy.

a vessel for melting metal; melting pot.
an electrolytic cell for reducing certain metals, as aluminum, from fused salts.

British.

a chimney pot.
Dialect. a basket or box used for carrying provisions or the like; a pannier.

Slang. a large sum of money.

all the money bet at a single time; pool.

British Slang. (in horse racing) the favorite.

a potshot.

a liquid measure, usually equal to a pint or quart.

Armor.

an open, broad-brimmed helmet of the 17th century.
any open helmet.

Slang. a potbelly.

verb (used with object), pot·ted, pot·ting.

to put into a pot.

to preserve (food) in a pot.

to cook in a pot.

to transplant into a pot: We must pot the petunias.

Hunting.

to shoot (game birds) on the ground or water, or (game animals) at rest, instead of in flight or running: He can't even pot a sitting duck.
to shoot for food, not for sport.

Informal. to capture, secure, or win.

verb (used without object), pot·ted, pot·ting.

Informal. to take a potshot; shoot.

QUIZ

ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?

We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.

Question 1 of 8

Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?

navy

beryl

azure

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Meet Grammar Coach

Write or paste your essay, email, or story into Grammar Coach and get grammar help

Improve Your Writing

Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing

Idioms about pot

go to pot, to become ruined; deteriorate: With no one to care for it, the lovely old garden went to pot.

stir the pot, to promote instability or conflict, as by taunting, encouraging, or otherwise provoking the participants in an ongoing disagreement: Trolls on Twitter just want to stir the pot.

sweeten the pot, Informal. sweeten (def. 8).

Origin of pot

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English pott; cognate with Dutch, Low German pot, Old Icelandic pottr, Swedish pott, potta, Danish pot, potte; further origin uncertain

OTHER WORDS FROM pot

potlike, adjective

Words nearby pot

postvertebral, postviral syndrome, postvocalic, postwar, posy, pot, potable, potae, potage, potager, potamic

Other definitions for pot (2 of 4)

pot²

[ pot ]

/ pɒt /

noun Slang.

marijuana.

Origin of pot

An Americanism dating back to 1935–40; said to be a shortening of Mexican Spanish potiguaya or potaguaya, apparently contraction of potación de guaya wine or brandy in which marijuana buds have been steeped (literally, “drink of grief”)

Other definitions for pot (3 of 4)

pot³

[ pot ]

/ pɒt /

noun Scot. and North England.

a deep hole; pit.

Origin of pot

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English potte, perhaps identical with pot¹

Other definitions for pot (4 of 4)

pot.

abbreviation Electricity.

potential.

potentiometer.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use pot in a sentence

While a roux is a common thickener that we should all master for dishes such as gravy and gumbo, it is of no use once we’ve already reached the end of a recipe’s instructions and don’t want to bring out another pot.
Sauce, gravy or stew too thin? We’ve got 3 ways to fix that.|Aaron Hutcherson|February 12, 2021|Washington Post
Oram suggests heating a pot of water to near boiling, pouring it into a non-insulated, hard-sided bottle like a Nalgene, and placing it in your sleeping bag before you get in.
How to stay warm while sleeping in the frigid outdoors|Alisha McDarris|February 12, 2021|Popular-Science
Depending on whether you are right or wrong, $10 is either added to your pot or taken away.
Zen and the Art of Puzzle Solving|Pradeep Mutalik|February 10, 2021|Quanta Magazine
With the installation “What’s Cooking,” artist Bobby Adams frames climate change with the acute, everyday urgency of a pot boiling over.
Baltimore exhibition of outsider art celebrates nature’s ‘excess’ with a wake-up call about pollution|Kelsey Ables|February 8, 2021|Washington Post

How to boil tree sapWith the largest pot you own and a reliable heat source, you can head outside and start boiling whenever you’ve collected “enough” sap from your trees.
Make your own maple syrup without harming the trees|By Tim MacWelch/Outdoor Life|February 7, 2021|Popular-Science
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and season liberally with salt.
Make Carla Hall’s Crispy Shallot Green Bean Casserole|Carla Hall|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Set a heatproof bowl over a pot of gently simmering water, making sure that the bowl does not touch the surface of the water.
Carla Hall’s Christmas Day Treat: Rum Balls|Carla Hall|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Before this latest brush with the law, the rapper was facing pot-bust and unrelated gun charges.
Rapper Bobby Shmurda Arrested at New York’s Notorious Quad Studios|M.L. Nestel|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
So too does Inherent Vice, which is something like a love letter written in pot smoke to the Gold Coast.
Paul Thomas Anderson: The West Coast’s Scorsese|Nick Schager|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Because Wright was a no-show in criminal court to face the loud music and pot bust he already had an outstanding warrant.
The Navy ‘Hero’ Who Pimped an HIV-Positive Teen|M.L. Nestel|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A Yankee, whose face had been mauled in a pot-house brawl, assured General Jackson that he had received his scars in battle.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
And, old ink pot, tuck a horse blanket under my chin, and rub me down with brickbats while I feed!
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
Gunn touched the brim of his soft felt hat, which he wore turned down all round apparently in imitation of a flower-pot.
Dope|Sax Rohmer
The pot goeth so long to the water til at length it commeth broken home.
A Selection from the Works of Frederick Locker|Frederick Locker
Then with the potatoes we've roasted in the ashes and plenty of bread and butter and a pot of coffee—Well, words fail.
Dorothy at Skyrie|Evelyn Raymond

British Dictionary definitions for pot (1 of 4)

pot¹

/ (pɒt) /

noun

a container made of earthenware, glass, or similar material; usually round and deep, often having a handle and lid, used for cooking and other domestic purposes

short for flowerpot, teapot

the amount that a pot will hold; potful

a chamber pot, esp a small one designed for a baby or toddler

a handmade piece of pottery

a large mug or tankard, as for beer

Australian any of various measures used for serving beer

informal a cup or trophy, esp of silver, awarded as a prize in a competition

the money or stakes in the pool in gambling games, esp poker

(often plural) informal a large amount, esp of money

a wicker trap for catching fish, esp crustaceansa lobster pot

billiards snooker a shot by which a ball is pocketed

mainly British short for chimneypot

US informal a joint fund created by a group of individuals or enterprises and drawn upon by them for specified purposes

hunting See pot shot

See potbelly

go to pot to go to ruin; deteriorate

verb pots, potting or potted (mainly tr)

to set (a plant) in a flowerpot to grow

to put or preserve (goods, meat, etc) in a pot

to cook (food) in a pot

to shoot (game) for food rather than for sport

to shoot (game birds or animals) while they are on the ground or immobile rather than flying or running

(also intr) to shoot casually or without careful aim at (an animal, etc)

to sit (a baby or toddler) on a chamber pot

(also intr) to shape clay as a potter

billiards snooker to pocket (a ball)

informal to capture or win; secure

Word Origin for pot

Late Old English pott, from Medieval Latin pottus (unattested), perhaps from Latin pōtus a drink; compare Middle Low German pot, Old Norse pottr

British Dictionary definitions for pot (2 of 4)

pot²

/ (pɒt) /

noun

Scot and Northern English dialect a deep hole or pothole
(capital when part of a name)Pen-y-Ghent Pot

Word Origin for pot

C14: perhaps identical with pot 1 but possibly of Scandinavian origin; compare Swedish dialect putt water hole, pit

British Dictionary definitions for pot (3 of 4)

pot³

/ (pɒt) /

noun

slang cannabis used as a drug in any form, such as leaves (marijuana or hemp) or resin (hashish)

Word Origin for pot

C20: perhaps shortened from Mexican Indian potiguaya

British Dictionary definitions for pot (4 of 4)

pot⁴

/ (pɒt) /

noun

informal short for potentiometer

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with pot

pot

In addition to the idiom beginning with pot

pot calling the kettle black, the

also see:

fish or cut bait (shit or get off the pot)
go to pot
hit the jackpot
sweeten the kitty (pot)
take potluck
tempest in a teapot
watched pot never boils

pot

Idioms about pot

Origin of pot

OTHER WORDS FROM pot

Words nearby pot

Other definitions for pot (2 of 4)

Origin of pot

Other definitions for pot (3 of 4)

Origin of pot

Other definitions for pot (4 of 4)

Words related to pot

How to use pot in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pot (1 of 4)

Word Origin for pot

British Dictionary definitions for pot (2 of 4)

Word Origin for pot

British Dictionary definitions for pot (3 of 4)

Word Origin for pot

British Dictionary definitions for pot (4 of 4)

Other Idioms and Phrases with pot