teapot

American  

[tee-pot] / ˈtiˌpɒt /

noun

1. a container with a lid, spout, and handle, in which tea is made and from which it is poured.

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teapot British  

/ ˈtiːˌpɒt /

noun

1. a container with a lid, spout, and handle, in which tea is made and from which it is served

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teapot Idioms  

1. see tempest in a teapot.

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Etymology

Origin of teapot

First recorded in 1610–20; tea + pot ¹

Explanation

When you were little, you might have learned a ditty about a teapot: "I'm a little teapot, short and stout / Here is my handle, here is my spout..." As its name suggests, a teapot is a vessel in which you brew tea. "Tip me over and pour me out!" To make tea, put loose tea or tea bags in a teapot and fill it with very hot water. After the tea steeps, you can pour it into cups. The very first teapots were made in China, and historians believe that tea was drunk directly from the spout, rather than being poured into a cup for drinking. These earliest teapots were made of metal. In the 17th century, porcelain teapots became more common.

Example Sentences

It is one of more than 100 teapot refiners that are critical tools for China to work around U.S. sanctions.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 5, 2026

For China, the more than 100 teapot refiners are a critical tool for working around U.S. sanctions.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026

“It’s the teapot refineries that are keeping the regime in Tehran in business,” said Daniel Roth, research director at UANI.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026

China’s teapot refiners pay for Iranian oil in the Chinese currency, the yuan, and Tehran uses some of the money to buy products in China that are then shipped to Iran.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026

The waiter appears with a teapot, two cups, and four cupcakes.

From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali