English Dictionary |
BOIL
Pronunciation (US): | (GB): |
IPA (US): |
Dictionary entry overview: What does boil mean?
• BOIL (noun)
The noun BOIL has 2 senses:
1. a painful sore with a hard core filled with pus
2. the temperature at which a liquid boils at sea level
Familiarity information: BOIL used as a noun is rare.
• BOIL (verb)
The verb BOIL has 5 senses:
1. come to the boiling point and change from a liquid to vapor
2. immerse or be immersed in a boiling liquid, often for cooking purposes
3. bring to, or maintain at, the boiling point
5. be in an agitated emotional state
Familiarity information: BOIL used as a verb is common.
Dictionary entry details
Sense 1
Meaning:
A painful sore with a hard core filled with pus
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Synonyms:
boil; furuncle
Hypernyms ("boil" is a kind of...):
staphylococcal infection (an infection with staphylococcus bacteria; usually marked by abscess formation)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "boil"):
gumboil (a boil or abscess on the gums)
Sense 2
Meaning:
The temperature at which a liquid boils at sea level
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Synonyms:
boil; boiling point
Context example:
they brought the water to a boil
Hypernyms ("boil" is a kind of...):
temperature (the degree of hotness or coldness of a body or environment (corresponding to its molecular activity))
Derivation:
boil (immerse or be immersed in a boiling liquid, often for cooking purposes)
boil (bring to, or maintain at, the boiling point)
boil (come to the boiling point and change from a liquid to vapor)
Conjugation: |
Past simple: boiled
Past participle: boiled
-ing form: boiling
Sense 1
Meaning:
Come to the boiling point and change from a liquid to vapor
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Context example:
Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius
Hypernyms (to "boil" is one way to...):
change state; turn (undergo a transformation or a change of position or action)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "boil"):
boil over; overboil (overflow or cause to overflow while boiling)
Sentence frames:
Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something
Sentence example:
The water boils
Antonym:
freeze (change to ice)
Derivation:
boil (the temperature at which a liquid boils at sea level)
boiler (sealed vessel where water is converted to steam)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Immerse or be immersed in a boiling liquid, often for cooking purposes
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Context example:
boil wool
Hypernyms (to "boil" is one way to...):
change (undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "boil"):
overboil (boil excessively)
simmer (boil slowly at low temperature)
Sentence frames:
Something ----s
Somebody ----s something
Sentence example:
The chefs boil the vegetables
Derivation:
boil (the temperature at which a liquid boils at sea level)
boiler (a metal pot for stewing or boiling; usually has a lid)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Bring to, or maintain at, the boiling point
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Context example:
boil this liquid until it evaporates
Hypernyms (to "boil" is one way to...):
alter; change; modify (cause to change; make different; cause a transformation)
Cause:
boil (come to the boiling point and change from a liquid to vapor)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "boil"):
decoct (extract the essence of something by boiling it)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Sentence example:
They boil the water
Derivation:
boil (the temperature at which a liquid boils at sea level)
boiler (sealed vessel where water is converted to steam)
Sense 4
Meaning:
Be agitated
Classified under:
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming
Synonyms:
Context example:
the sea was churning in the storm
Hypernyms (to "boil" is one way to...):
move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "boil"):
roll; seethe (boil vigorously)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s
Sentence example:
The water boils
Sense 5
Meaning:
Be in an agitated emotional state
Classified under:
Verbs of feeling
Synonyms:
boil; seethe
Context example:
The customer was seething with anger
Hypernyms (to "boil" is one way to...):
be (have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun))
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "boil"):
bubble over; overflow; spill over (overflow with a certain feeling)
ferment (be in an agitated or excited state)
sizzle (seethe with deep anger or resentment)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP
Sentence example:
Sam and Sue boil over the results of the experiment
Context examples
I went down the stairs and into the hall, where I found the commissionnaire fast asleep in his box, with the kettle boiling furiously upon the spirit-lamp.
(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Again I heard from her own lips things that made my blood boil, and again I cursed this brute who mishandled the woman I loved.
(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
When her hands were not hard from the endless housework, they were swollen and red like boiled beef, what of the washing.
(Martin Eden, by Jack London)
When the water in the kettle was boiling, the cook went into the bedroom to fetch Fundevogel and throw him into it.
(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)
I laid in a stock of boiled flesh, of rabbits and fowls, and took with me two vessels, one filled with milk and the other with water.
(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)
‘Oh, tut, tut! sweating—rank sweating!’ he cried, throwing his fat hands out into the air like a man who is in a boiling passion.
(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
"I say, Tess," he said, the next moment, "don't you think that coffee's boiled long enough!"
(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)
I boiled the water, but it was Maud who made the coffee. And how good it was!
(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)
The images show a pattern of turbulent “boiling” plasma that covers the entire sun.
(Newest solar telescope produces first images, National Science Foundation)
The insides of our homes can contain small molecules like chloroform or benzene a component of gasoline through simple actions like showering, boiling water, or storing cars on lawnmowers in attached garages.
(Common Houseplant with Genetic Modification Can Remove Polluted Air, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)
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