What does "ashcan" mean?

A container for collecting ashes, especially from wood and coal fires, for eventual disposal elsewhere.

What is a synonym for "ashcan"?

Common synonyms include: ash bin, ash-bin, ashbin, dust bin, dustbin, garbage can.

adj, noun, verb, slang

adj, noun, verb, slang ·Moderate ·College level

Noun

1
A container for collecting ashes, especially from wood and coal fires, for eventual disposal elsewhere.
2
a bin that holds rubbish until it is collected wordnet
3
A dustbin, trash can, or the like.
"He chain-lit a fresh cigarette and flicked the old butt, still smouldering, into the steel ash-can beside his drawing table."
4
A kind of large firecracker. US, slang

Verb

Adjective

1
Of or pertaining to the Ashcan School of American art. not-comparable
2
Describing a comic book originally published solely to retain ownership of a trademark, not intended for general release; later used for promotional comic books intended for limited release to the public. not-comparable

"He chain-lit a fresh cigarette and flicked the old butt, still smouldering, into the steel ash-can beside his drawing table."

From ash + can.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.