Barrel definitions and example sentences on Wordnik

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Definitions (35)

American Heritage Dictionary (16)

noun A large cylindrical container, usually made of staves bound together with hoops, with a flat top and bottom of equal diameter.
noun The quantity that a barrel with a given or standard capacity will hold.
noun 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. See Table at measurement.

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Century Dictionary (11)

A vessel or cask of a cylindrical form, generally bulging in the middle, usually made of wooden staves bound together with hoops, and having flat parallel heads.
As a measure of capacity, the quantity of anything, liquid or solid, which a barrel should contain. In English metrology there were four principal kinds of barrels: the wine-barrel of 31½ wine gallons; the London ale-barrel of 32 beer gallons; the country ale- and beer-barrel of 34 beer gallons; and the London beer-barrel of 36 beer gallons. The wine-barrel was legalized in the reign of Richard III., the others under Henry VIII. Under George III. the barrel of ale or beer for town and country was made 36 gallons. Oil, spirits, tar, and pork were measured by the wine-barrel; vinegar, by the barrel of 34 gallons. A barrel of eels or herrings contained 30 gallons by a statute of Henry VI., but by another of Edward IV. this was made 42 gallons. Salmon and spruce beer were also measured by barrels of 42 gallons. A barrel of beef, wet codfish, or honey contained 32 wine gallons; but honey was sometimes sold by barrels of 42 gallons of 12 pounds each. By a statute of George III., a barrel of fish was made 38 wine gallons; but a barrel of salt pilchards or mackerel measured 50 gallons. The barrel of apples, coal, or nuts contained 3 Winchester bushels, each of 8 gallons, dry measure. The barrel of anchovies contained 16 pounds; of gunpowder, 100 pounds; of raisins, 1 hundredweight; of candles, 120 pounds; of barilla, potash, or butter, 2 hundredweight (but only 106 pounds of Essex butter, and 156 of Sussex); the barrel of soap, 256 pounds. A barrel of plates, by a statute of Charles II., contained 300 pounds. There were besides a great variety of other barrels in Scotland and Ireland. In England the barrel is no longer a legal measure. In the United States the barrel in liquid measure is commonly 31½ gallons, and for solid substances it is generally a unit of weight, a barrel of flour, for example, being 196 pounds, and a barrel of beef or pork 200 pounds. In Maine a barrel of fish is by law 200 pounds. In Louisiana a barrel in dry measure is 3¼ bushels. The bushels vary in different States. On the continent of Europe, previous to the introduction of the metric system, there were many barrels. In each state of Italy the barile for wine was a little smaller than that for oil; they were about 30 to 60 liters. The barril of Normandy was about 60 Paris pintes. The baral of Montpellier was 25⅜ liters; the barrallon of Barcelona, liters; the baril of Riga, 137¾ liters. The barrique was commonly larger than the baril. The abbreviation is bbl., pl. bbls.
The contents of a barrel: sometimes, like bottle, used to signify intoxicating drink.

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Examples (50)

Oil's 26 percent slide from its July 11 record of $147.27 a barrel is a ` ` symptom '' of an economic slowdown in the U.S. and Europe and may continue over the next six months, investor — Top Stories - Google News
To make sure again that the barrel was there, she gave a little kick--and drew back her foot with a cry of pain. — Scottish Ghost Stories
Four castors screwed to the bottom of the barrel will be an improvement, as the chair without them cannot easily be moved about. — St. Nicholas Magazine for Boys and Girls, Vol. 5, Nov 1877-Nov 1878 No 1, Nov 1877
Cuthbert had flung up his hand to shield his face, for the barrel was aimed straight at his temple. — The Lost Treasure of Trevlyn A Story of the Days of the Gunpowder Plot
The next day a barrel was mysteriously placed beside the door, and as mysteriously filled with fresh spring-water every morning Nor was this superior young person without other quiet attentions. — Short Story Classics (American) Vol. 2

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cylinder · box · bottle · gun · bolt · jar · pot · container · tank · pipe · plate · bucket

Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (3)

American Heritage Dictionary (1)

Middle English barel, from Old French baril.

Century Dictionary (2)

from Middle English barel, barele, barayl, from Old French bareil, baril, modern F. baril = Provencal Spanish Portuguese barril = Italian barile = German barel = Old Bulgarian Servian Russian barilo = Polish baryla (barred l) = New Greek βαρέλι, from Middle Latin barile, barillus, barellus, baurilis, a barrel. Origin uncertain; perhaps connected with bar. The Celtic words, Welsh baril = Gaelic baraill = Irish bairile = Manx barrel = Cornish balliar, are of English origin.
from barrel, n.

barrel

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