Cauldron
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A large bowl-shaped pot used for boiling over an open flame.
"Double, double, toile and trouble; / Fire burne, and Cauldron bubble."
- 2 a very large pot that is used for boiling wordnet
- 3 A strategic encirclement.
"After having defended the constantly shrinking perimeter of their position for over two weeks, the encircled German units in the Cherkassy “cauldron” were ordered to break out."
- 4 An unsettled difficult situation or place. figuratively
"a cauldron of discontent"
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
More examples"Standing over the cauldron, the witch stirred a repulsive stew made of mud, piss, and human body parts."
Etymology
From Middle English caudroun, borrowed from Old Northern French caudron, ultimately from Late Latin caldāria (“cooking-pot”), from Latin caldus (“hot”). Spelling later Latinized by having an l inserted. See chowder, caldera. The military sense is a semantic loan from German Kessel; compare English kettling.
Related phrases
More for "cauldron"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.