First Known Use: 14th century
Dictionary
1barrel
noun bar·rel \ˈber-əl, ˈba-rəl\
: a round usually wooden container with curved sides and flat ends
: the amount of something in a barrel
: the part of a gun that the bullets go through when the gun is fired
Full Definition of BARREL
1
: a round bulging vessel of greater length than breadth that is usually made of staves bound with hoops and has flat ends of equal diameter
2
a : the amount contained in a barrel; especially : the amount (as 31 gallons of fermented beverage or 42 gallons of petroleum) fixed for a certain commodity used as a unit of measure b : a great quantity
3
: a drum or cylindrical part: as a : the discharging tube of a gun b : the part of a fountain pen or of a pencil containing the ink or lead c : a cylindrical or tapering housing containing the optical components of a photographic-lens system and the iris diaphragm d : the fuel outlet from the carburetor on a gasoline engine
4
: the trunk of a quadruped
— bar·reled \-əld\ adjective
— on the barrel
: asking for or granting no credit
— over a barrel
: at a disadvantage : in an awkward position
See barrel defined for English-language learners
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Origin of BARREL
Middle English barel, from Anglo-French baril
Related to BARREL
- Synonyms
- abundance, lot, basketful, boatload, bucket, bunch, bundle, bushel, carload, chunk, deal, dozen, fistful, gobs, good deal, heap, hundred, lashings (also lashins) [chiefly British], loads, mass, mess, mountain, much, multiplicity, myriad, oodles, pack, passel, peck, pile, plateful, plenitude, plentitude, plenty, pot, potful, profusion, quantity, raft, reams, scads, sheaf, shipload, sight, slew, spate, stack, store, ton, truckload, volume, wad, wealth, yard
2barrel
verb
: to move very fast and often in an uncontrolled or dangerous way
barreled or barrelledbarrel·ing or barrel·ling
Full Definition of BARREL
transitive verb
: to put or pack in a barrel
intransitive verb
: to move at a high speed or without hesitation
See barrel defined for English-language learners
First Known Use of BARREL
15th century
Related to BARREL
- Synonyms
- hurry, belt, blast, blaze, blow, bolt, bomb [slang], bowl, breeze, bundle, bustle, buzz, cannonball, careen, career, chase, course, crack (on), dash, drive, fly, hare, hasten, hie, highball, hotfoot (it), hump, hurl, hurtle, hustle, jet, jump, motor, nip, pelt, race, ram, rip, rocket, run, rush, rustle, scoot, scurry, scuttle, shoot, speed, step, tear, travel, trot, whirl, whisk, zip, zoom
BARREL Defined for Kids
1barrel
noun bar·rel \ˈber-əl\
Definition of BARREL for Kids
1
: a round container often with curved sides that is longer than it is wide and has flat ends
2
: the amount contained in a full barrel <a barrel of water>
3
: something shaped like a cylinder <the barrel of a gun>
2barrel
verb
bar·reled or bar·relledbar·rel·ing or bar·rel·ling
Definition of BARREL for Kids
: to move at a high speed
Learn More About BARREL
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