n.
- A large cylindrical container, usually made of staves bound together with hoops, with a flat top and bottom of equal diameter.
- The quantity that a barrel with a given or standard capacity will hold.
- (Abbr. bar. or bbl. or bl.) Any of various units of volume or capacity. In the U.S. Customary System it varies, as a liquid measure, from 31 to 42 gallons (120 to 159 liters) as established by law or usage.
- The cylindrical part or hollow shaft of any of various mechanisms, as:
- The metal, cylindrical part of a firearm through which the bullet travels.
- A cylinder that contains a movable piston.
- The drum of a capstan.
- The cylinder within the mechanism of a timepiece that contains the mainspring.
- The trunk of a quadruped animal, such as a horse or cow.
- Informal. A large quantity: a barrel of fun.
- Slang. An act or instance of moving rapidly, often recklessly, in a motor vehicle.
Likened to a barrel, as in shape: a barrel chest; barrel hips.
v., -reled, or -relled, -rel·ing, or -rel·ling, -rels, or -rels. v.tr.
To put or pack in a barrel.
v.intr. Slang
To move at a high speed or rate of progress: "That the European Union barreled ahead was not surprising" (Richard W. Stevenson).
idioms:
on the barrel (or barrelhead)
- Granting, giving, or requesting no credit: paid cash on the barrel for the car.
- In a very awkward position from which extrication is difficult: During the negotiations the opposing faction had us over a barrel.
[Middle English barel, from Old French baril.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
