pour
Americanverb (used with object)
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pours,
present (3rd person singular)
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poured,
past participle, past
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pouring
present participle
-
to send (a liquid, fluid, or anything in loose particles) flowing or falling, as from one container to another, or into, over, or on something.
to pour a glass of milk; to pour water on a plant.
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to emit or propel, especially continuously or rapidly.
The hunter poured bullets into the moving object.
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to produce or utter in or as in a stream or flood (often followed byout ).
to pour out one's troubles to a friend.
verb (used without object)
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pours,
present (3rd person singular)
-
poured,
past participle, past
-
pouring
present participle
-
to issue, move, or proceed in great quantity or number.
Crowds poured from the stadium after the game.
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to flow forth or along; stream.
Floodwaters poured over the embankments.
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to rain heavily (often used impersonally with it as subject).
It was pouring, but fortunately we had umbrellas.
noun
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the act of pouring.
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an abundant or continuous flow or stream.
a pour of insults.
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a heavy fall of rain.
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a wine or other beverage.
a list of the best pours.
verb
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to flow or cause to flow in a stream
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(tr) to issue, emit, etc, in a profuse way
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Also: pour with rain. to rain heavily
it's pouring down outside
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(intr) to move together in large numbers; swarm
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(intr) to serve tea, coffee, etc
shall I pour?
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events, esp unfortunate ones, come together or occur in rapid succession
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informal to be unenthusiastic about or discourage
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to try to calm a quarrel, etc
noun
Usage
The verbs pour and pore are sometimes confused: she poured cream over her strudel; she pored (not poured ) over the manuscript
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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pourabilitynoun
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pourernoun
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interpourverb (used with object)
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repourverb (used with object)
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pourableadjective
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unpourableadjective
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unpouredadjective
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pouringlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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poursimple
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pourssimple
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have pouredperfect
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has pouredperfect
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am pouringprogressive
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are pouringprogressive
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is pouringprogressive
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have been pouringperfect progressive
-
has been pouringperfect progressive
Past
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pouredsimple
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had pouredperfect
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was pouringprogressive
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were pouringprogressive
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had been pouringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pour
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English pouren; origin uncertain
Explanation
To pour is to flow rapidly in a steady stream, or to cause something to flow. You can pour good coffee into a cup and pour bad coffee down the drain. You can pour your heart out, pour a cup of orange juice into or out of a cup, or watch the rain pour down while a poem pours from your lips. A jet of water may pour from a spout. Listen to how the water pours in this poem from Lewis Carroll's book, Alice in Wonderland: “How doth the little crocodile / Improve his shining tail, / And pour the waters of the Nile, / On every golden scale!”
Vocabulary lists containing pour
Commonly Confused Words, List 2
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Commonly Confused Words, List 5
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Commonly Confused Words, List 7
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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.
See Examples For:
Officers pour out and stand ready with a battering ram, but the front door is already open.
From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026
And did you know that the big hyperscalers have already poured at least $1 trillion into data centers and other AI hardware, and are preparing to pour $4.6 trillion more over the next few years?
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2026
As Wall Street and Washington pour billions into quantum tech, industry leaders warn that real-world utility—and profits—may still be years away.
From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026
On this score, it’s a welcome development if tech investors are acting in part on a growing conviction that Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh intends to pour less rum into the punchbowl.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
“You said I could pour the batter this time,” Mari said.
From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste
A company pays for equipment up front but charges the cost against profits gradually, as depreciation, so profits can look strong while cash pours out the door.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026
There's a saying in neighbouring Belgium: whenever it pours in Paris, it at least drizzles in Brussels.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
He pours himself a cup of Yorkshire tea and walks up to the attic, just another human trying to figure out life in the age of AGI.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
Water has relatively low viscosity and pours easily, while honey and tar are much more viscous and move slowly.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2026
Or when he pours the juice into three glasses that are murkier than they should be.
From "Amina's Song" by Hena Khan
The Los Angeles Lakers’ 27-year-old point guard poured in eight 3-pointers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026
Next came a mystical bath ritual: a little bit of water poured over the body, part of a protective tradition that some Senegalese wrestlers undergo.
From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026
Tributes to the renowned British actor have poured in since his death at his Los Angeles home after "a brief and poignant journey" with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy Body Dementia was announced on Thursday.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
Doncic poured in 41 points with nine assists and Reaves had 26 points with seven assists, four rebounds and no turnovers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
I barely got the words out before Lorren’s screech poured through the speaker.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
Cyber-security researchers at multiple firms are pouring over evidence gathered from so-called "honeypots" to provide clues as to who is behind the waves of freezer hacks.
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
“Outside screaming at the rain pouring / ‘Come on, do it, I can take more.’”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026
Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon all reported quarterly results this week, and each signaled it would keep pouring money into data centers and chips even as investors grow impatient for returns.
From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026
The land grab puts the property in the same league as Florida mega-compounds owned by Ken Griffin and Jeff Bezos, underscoring the flood of extreme wealth pouring into the Gulf Coast enclave.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
He looked past Aaron to the kids pouring out of the building in full-blown three p.m. exuberance.
From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
