tun

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. A large cask for liquids, especially wine.
2. n. A measure of liquid capacity, especially one equivalent to approximately 252 gallons (954 liters).

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. An amended spelling of ton.
2. n. A large cask for holding liquids, especially wine, ale, or beer. See ton.
3. n. Any vessel; a jar.
4. n. In a brewery, the fermenting-vat or -tank.
5. n. A measure of capacity, equal by old statutes to 252 wine-gallons. There was a local tun of beer in London of 2 butts, and a customary tun of sweet oil was 236 gallons, and of syrup 3½ barrels. As all measures of capacity are regarded by metrologists as having been defined first by weight, some have supposed the tun was originally a short ton weight of water.
6. n. In conchology, a shell of the genus Dolium or family Doliidæ; a tun-shell.
7. n. The upper part of a chimney; also, the chimney itself.
8. To store in a tun or tuns, as wine or malt liquor; hence, to store in vessels of any sort for keeping.
9. To fill as if a tun.
10. To mingle with liquor when it is stored, as for the purpose of flavoring it, or making it keep better.
11. n. An obsolete form of town.

Wiktionary

1. n. A large cask; an oblong vessel bulging in the middle, like a pipe or puncheon, and girt with hoops; a wine cask.
2. n. brewing A fermenting vat.
3. n. An old English measure of capacity for liquids, containing 252 wine gallons; equal to two pipes.
4. n. A weight of 2,240 pounds.
5. n. An indefinite large quantity.
6. n. archaic A drunkard.
7. n. zoology Any shell belonging to Dolium and allied genera; called also tun-shell.
8. v. transitive To put into tuns, or casks.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. A large cask; an oblong vessel bulging in the middle, like a pipe or puncheon, and girt with hoops; a wine cask.
2. n. (Brewing) A fermenting vat.
3. n. A certain measure for liquids, as for wine, equal to two pipes, four hogsheads, or 252 gallons. In different countries, the tun differs in quantity.
4. n. (Com.), rare A weight of 2,240 pounds. See Ton.
5. n. An indefinite large quantity.
6. n. A drunkard; -- so called humorously, or in contempt.
7. n. (Zoöl.) Any shell belonging to Dolium and allied genera; -- called also tun-shell.
8. v. To put into tuns, or casks.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a large cask especially one holding a volume equivalent to 2 butts or 252 gals