What does "pod" mean?
A seed case for legumes (e.g. peas, beans, peppers); a seedpod.
Pod
/ˈpɑd/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A seed case for legumes (e.g. peas, beans, peppers); a seedpod.
- Grammar: pod is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: seedpod, abdomen, aeroplane, airplane.
- Useful contrasts: solitary animal.
- Usage evidence: His whole family is like that. They're like peas in a pod.
How to use "pod"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "pod" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "pod" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "pod" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "pod" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "pod" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "seedpod" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "pod", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A seed case for legumes (e.g. peas, beans, peppers); a seedpod.
- 2 Initialism of print on demand. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism, uncountable
- 3 a detachable container of fuel on an airplane wordnet
- 4 A small vehicle, especially used in emergency situations.
- 5 Initialism of proof of delivery. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable
Show 20 more definitions
- 6 a group of aquatic mammals wordnet
- 7 A bag; a pouch. UK, dialectal, obsolete
"cart, that is clouted and shod, cart ladder and wimble, with perser and pod"
- 8 Initialism of plain old data. abbreviation, alt-of, initialism, uncountable
- 9 a several-seeded dehiscent fruit as e.g. of a leguminous plant wordnet
- 10 A group of whales, dolphins, seals, porpoises or hippopotami. collective
- 11 Initialism of point of divergence. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable
- 12 the vessel that contains the seeds of a plant (not the seeds themselves) wordnet
- 13 A group of people who regularly interact. broadly
"These matrilineal groups associate with related families, who are probably sister lineages, to form pods."
- 14 Initialism of place of death. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, initialism, uncountable
"Vickers et al. found that at entry to the study, that is, when it was thought that cure was no longer possible, 98 (68%) of 164 families recorded a preference for home as POD."
- 15 A small section of a larger office, compartmentalised for a specific purpose.
- 16 A subsection of a prison, containing a number of inmates.
- 17 A very small room or space for one person to inhabit, as in a capsule hotel.
- 18 A nicotine cartridge.
- 19 A lie-flat business or first class seat.
- 20 A tapered, cylindrical body of ore or minerals.
- 21 A straight channel or groove in the body of certain forms of, usually tapered, augers and boring-bits.
- 22 Clipping of podcast. Internet, abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, informal
"I'd started shopping at 2 a.m., and the pod I listened to while shopping was almost through, so had to be 3 damn near."
- 23 A set of commercials to be shown together.
"These ads are shown during commercial breaks when there is no game action. Usually, multiple spots are grouped into a pod of commercials."
- 24 In rugby union, a small group (usually 3 or 4) of forwards working together as a group in open play.
- 25 Clipping of isopod. abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, informal
Verb
- 1 To bear or produce pods intransitive
"Wherefore it was, that many ignorant Mardians, who had not pushed their investigations into the science of physiology, sagely divined, that the Tapparians must have podded into life like peas, instead of being otherwise indebted for their existence."
- 2 produce pods, of plants wordnet
- 3 To remove peas from their case. transitive
- 4 take something out of its shell or pod wordnet
- 5 To put into a pod or to enter a pod. intransitive, transitive
"Thus the torpedoes will have to be stored internally or be podded into streamline containers."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 To swell or fill. intransitive
Antonyms
solitary animal
Example
"His whole family is like that. They're like peas in a pod."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "pod"?
Common synonyms include: seedpod, abdomen, aeroplane, airplane, anatomy, animal group.
How do you use "pod" in a sentence?
His whole family is like that. They're like peas in a pod.
How do you pronounce "pod"?
Pronounced /ˈpɑd/.
Etymology
Origin uncertain. Perhaps from Middle English *pod ("seed-pod, husk, shell, outer covering"; attested in pod-ware (“legume seed; seed grain”)), itself possibly from Old English pād (“an outer garment, covering, coat, cloak”), from Proto-West Germanic *paidu, from Proto-Germanic *paidō (“coat, smock, shirt”), from Proto-Indo-European *baiteh₂- (“woolen clothes”). If so, then cognate with Old Saxon pēda (“skirt”), German dialectal Pfeid, Pfeit (“shirt”), Gothic 𐍀𐌰𐌹𐌳𐌰 (paida, “mantle, skirt”), and perhaps Albanian petk (“gown, garment, dress, suit”) and Ancient Greek βαίτη (baítē, “goat-skin, fur-coat, tent”).