pot

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:

pot

Wikipedia

Pronunciation

• (UK) enPR: pŏt, IPA^(key): /pɒt/
• Rhymes: -ɒt
• (US) enPR: pät, IPA^(key): /pɑt/, /pɔt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Etymology 1

From Middle English pot, potte, from Old English pott (“pot”) and Old French pot (“pot”) (probably from Frankish *pott); both Old English and Frankish from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot”), from Proto-Indo-European *budnós (“a type of vessel”).

Cognate with Saterland Frisian Pot (“pot”), Dutch pot (“pot”), German Low German Pott (“pot”), German Pott (“pot”), Swedish potta (“chamber pot”), Icelandic pottur (“tub, pot”), Old Armenian պոյտն (poytn, “pot, earthen pot”). Also, Old Norse pottr (“pot, tub, basin”).

The sense of ruin or deterioration was originally a general allusion to "being chopped up and tossed in a (normally fiery) pot, like a piece of meat" (i.e. to get wasted or done with (by someone)). The 'clean' slang term which was used in reference to toilet rooms and lavatories apparently derives from English chamberpots, although now usually encountered as potty in the context of children's toilet training.

Noun

pot (plural pots)

2. A flat-bottomed vessel (usually metal) used for cooking food.

   Synonyms: cookpot, cooking pot

3. Various similar open-topped vessels, particularly
   1. A vessel (usually earthenware) used with a seal for storing food, such as a honeypot.
   2. A vessel used for brewing or serving drinks: a coffeepot or teapot.
   3. A vessel used to hold soil for growing plants, particularly flowers: a flowerpot.
      • 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter X, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:

        He looked round the poor room, at the distempered walls, and the bad engravings in meretricious frames, the crinkly paper and wax flowers on the chiffonier; and he thought of a room like Father Bryan's, with panelling, with cut glass, with tulips in silver pots, such a room as he had hoped to have for his own.

   4. (archaic except in fixed expressions) A vessel used for urination and defecation: a chamber pot; (figuratively, slang) a toilet; the lavatory.

      Synonyms: can, chamber pot, potty, shitpot; see also Thesaurus:chamber pot

      Shit or get off the pot.

      • 2011, Ben Zeller, Secrets of Beaver Creek, page 204:

        “Clinton,” Gail cried from outside, “are you going to sit on the pot all day?”

   5. A crucible: a melting pot.
   7. (Maine) A pot-shaped trap used for catching lobsters or other seafood: a lobster pot.

      Synonyms: lobster pot, lobster trap

   8. A pot-shaped metal or earthenware extension of a flue above the top of a chimney: a chimney pot.
   9. A perforated cask for draining sugar.
   10. (obsolete) An earthen or pewter cup or mug used for drinking liquor.
       • 1930, Norman Lindsay, Redheap, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1965, →OCLC, page 85:

         "So kindly keep the vainglorious enumeration of your pots for the benefit of those village idiots who compose your particular set of boozing companions."

   11. (Australia, Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania) A glass of beer in Australia whose size varies regionally but is typically around 10 fl oz (285 mL).

       Synonyms: (New South Wales, Western Australia) middy, (South Australia) schooner

       • 2009, Deborah Penrith et al., Live & Work in Australia, page 187:

         There are plenty of pubs and bars all over Australia (serving beer in schooners – 425ml or middies/pots ~285ml), and if you don′t fancy those you can drink in wine bars, pleasant beer gardens, or with friends at home.

4. (archaic except in place names) Pothole, sinkhole, vertical cave.

   Rowten Pot

5. A shallow hole used in certain games played with marbles. The marbles placed in it are called potsies.
6. (slang, uncountable) Ruin or deterioration.

   After his arrest, his prospects went to pot.

7. (historical) Any of various traditional units of volume notionally based on the capacity of a pot.
8. (historical) An iron hat with a broad brim worn as a helmet.
   • 1786, Francis Grose, A Treatise on Ancient Armour and Weapons, page 12:

     The pot is an iron hat with broad brims: there are many under the denomination in the Tower, said to have been taken from the French...

9. (rail transport) A pot-shaped non-conducting (usually ceramic) stand that supports an electrified rail while insulating it from the ground.
10. (gambling, poker) The money available to be won in a hand of poker or a round of other games of chance; (figuratively) any sum of money being used as an enticement.

    Synonyms: kitty, pool

    No one's interested. You need to sweeten the pot.

11. An allocation of money for a particular purpose.

    a pension pot

    a savings pot

12. (UK, horse-racing, slang) A favorite: a heavily-backed horse.
13. (slang) Clipping of potbelly: a pot-shaped belly, a paunch.
    • 1994, Quentin Tarantino, Pulp Fiction:

      Fabienne: I wish I had a pot.
      Butch: You were lookin' in the mirror and you wish you had some pot?
      Fabienne: A pot. A pot belly. Pot bellies are sexy.
      Butch: Well you should be happy, 'cause you do.
      Fabienne: Shut up, Fatso! I don't have a pot! I have a bit of a tummy, like Madonna when she did "Lucky Star". It's not the same thing.

14. (slang) Clipping of potshot: a haphazard shot; an easy or cheap shot.
    • 2011 October 1, Tom Fordyce, “Rugby World Cup 2011: England 16-12 Scotland”, in BBC Sport:

      England were shipping penalties at an alarming rate - five in the first 15 minutes alone - and with Wilkinson missing three long-distance pots of his own in the first 20 minutes, the alarm bells began to ring for Martin Johnson's men.

15. (chiefly East Midlands, Yorkshire) A plaster cast.
16. (historical) Alternative form of pott: a former size of paper, 12.5 × 15 inches.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• (East Asian round-bottomed pot): wok
• (used for cooking in pots): stove, cooker, multicooker, potholder, lid

Verb

pot (third-person singular simple present pots, present participle potting, simple past and past participle potted)

1. To put (something) into a pot.

   to pot a plant

2. To preserve by bottling or canning.

   potted meat

3. (electronics) To package a circuit by encasing it in resin.

English Wikipedia has an article on:

Potting (electronics)

Wikipedia

1. (snooker, pool, billiards, transitive) To cause a ball to fall into a pocket.
2. (snooker, pool, billiards, intransitive) To be capable of being potted.

   The black ball doesn't pot; the red is in the way.

3. (transitive) To shoot with a firearm.
   • 1897, Encyclopaedia of Sport:

     When hunted, it [the jaguar] takes refuge in trees, and this habit is well known to hunters, who pursue it with dogs and pot it when treed.

4. (intransitive, dated) To take a pot shot, or haphazard shot, with a firearm.
5. (transitive, colloquial) To secure; gain; win; bag.
6. (British) To send someone to gaol, expeditiously.
7. (obsolete, dialect, UK) To tipple; to drink.
   • 1623, Owen Feltham, Resolves: Divine, Moral, Political:

     It is less labour to plough than to pot it.

8. (transitive) To drain (e.g. sugar of the molasses) in a perforated cask.
   • 1793, Bryan Edwards, History, Civil and Commercial, of the British Colonies in the West Indies:

     Too much temper likewise prevents the melasses from separating from the sugar when it is potted or put into the hogshead

9. (transitive, British) To seat a person, usually a young child, on a potty or toilet, typically during toilet teaching.
   • 1975, Nancie R. Finnie, Handling the Young Cerebral Palsied Child, →ISBN, page 75:

     Ideally the best Ideally the best way of tackling the problem of toilet training, is to 'pot' your child at set intervals when he is at home, even though he may no longer be a baby, thus establishing a regular routine instead of one at odd intervals.

   • 1978, Penelope Leach, Your Baby & Child from Birth to Age Five, →ISBN, page 225:

     If you leave out this “catching" stage altogether and start proper toilet training at, say, eighteen months you will only have to pot your baby about 2000 times for the same effect.

   • 2004, Joan Gomez, Coping with Incontinence, →ISBN, page 33:

     Do not make the mistake of potting your baby as early as possible, but wait until she gives the signal that she is aware that puddles are somehow to do with her.

   • 2012, Nanny Smith, Nina Grunfeld, Nanny Knows Best: Successful Potty Training, →ISBN:

     Of course, if at any stage your child takes a violent dislike to the pot, then I would put it away for a few weeks and then try again, but if the pot is very comfortable, your attitude is calm and you don't over-pot your child (put him on the pot too often or talk about the pot too much), this shouldn't happen.

10. (chiefly East Midlands) To apply a plaster cast to a broken limb.
11. To catch (a fish, eel, etc) via a pot.
    • 1986, Carolyn Ellis, Fisher Folk: Two Communities on Chesapeake Bay, University Press of Kentucky, →ISBN, page 77:

      Most Fishneck watermen oystered in winter, using the same small skiffs from which they potted crabs in summer.

    • 1994, The Dukes County Intelligencer, volumes 36-37, page 131:

      Potting Eels: Except for the mature neshaws, Vineyard eels were potted (caught by pots) in September and October. […] When eeling was good, each pot would catch 25 to 100 pounds of neshaws; some pots would be filled to capacity.

12. (rugby, transitive) To score (a drop goal).
    • 1967, Arthur H. Carman, Ranfurly Shield Rugby, page 139:

      With five minutes to go, Trevathan potted his second goal, and finally it was the fullback Taylor who scored.

    • 1998, Geoffrey Serle: In Tribute, page 20:

      He played for the Oxford Australians against their Cambridge counterparts, and even potted a few goals at picnic Rugby matches.

Translations

Etymology 2

Possibly a shortened form of Mexican Spanish potiguaya (“marijuana leaves”) or potaguaya (“cannabis leaves”) or potación de guaya (literally “drink of grief”), supposedly denoting a drink of wine or brandy in which marijuana buds were steeped, from pota +‎ de +‎ guaya (see guayar (“to lament”)).

Noun

pot (uncountable)

2. (slang, uncountable) Marijuana.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:marijuana

   • 1968 July, Shel Silverstein, “Silverstein's Hippies”, in Playboy Magazine, page 189:

     The way we figure it, ma'am, if everybody walked around naked, smoked pot and listened to rock'n'roll, there wouldn't be any more wars!

Derived terms

• pothead

Translations

Further reading

• Ernest L. Abel (1982) “Pot”, in A Marihuana Dictionary: Words, Terms, Events, and Persons Relating to Cannabis, Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, →ISBN, pages 80–81

Etymology 3

English Wikipedia has an article on:

potentiometer

Wikipedia

Clipping of potentiometer.

Noun

pot (plural pots)

1. (slang, electronics) A simple electromechanical device used to control resistance or voltage (often to adjust sound volume) in an electronic device by rotating or sliding when manipulated by a human thumb, screwdriver, etc.

Derived terms

• slide pot (a sliding (linear) potentiometer typically designed to be manipulated by a thumb or finger)
• thumb pot (a rotating potentiometer designed to be turned by a thumb or finger)

Verb

pot (third-person singular simple present pots, present participle potting, simple past and past participle potted)

1. (slang, broadcasting) To fade volume in or out by means of a potentiometer.
   • 1999, A Broadcast Engineering Tutorial for Non-engineers, page 23:

     While the announcer is talking, the select switch on the mixing board for the microphone input is selected, and the microphone is “potted up.”

Etymology 4

Clipping of potion.

Noun

pot (plural pots)

1. (roleplaying games, video games) Clipping of potion.

References

• “pot” in the Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, 1974 edition.
• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “pot”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Anagrams

• OPT, OPt, OTP, PTO, TPO, oPt, opt, opt., top

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch pot, from Middle Dutch pot.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

pot (plural potte)

1. pot; jar

Albanian

Etymology

From Romance *pottus (“pot”).

Noun

pot m (plural pota, definite poti, definite plural potat)

1. mill-hopper, flower-bin
2. little boy

Related terms

• poç

Aromanian

Alternative forms

• potu

Etymology

From a Vulgar Latin *potō, analogical replacement for possō, regularization of Latin possum. Compare Romanian pot, putea.

Verb

pot first-singular present indicative (third-person singular present indicative poati or poate, past participle pututã)

1. can, could, to be able to

Related terms

• puteari, puteare
• putut

Basque

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

pot inan

1. kiss

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic, Valencian)

This entry needs an audio pronunciation. If you are a native speaker with a microphone, please record this word. The recorded pronunciation will appear here when it's ready.

• Rhymes: -ɔt

Etymology 1

Inherited from Vulgar Latin pottum, pottus (“pot, jar”), from Frankish *pott, from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot”), from Proto-Indo-European *budnós (“a type of vessel”).

Cognate with French pot, English pot, Saterland Frisian Pot, Dutch pot, German Low German Pott, German Pott, Swedish potta (“chamber pot”), Icelandic pottur (“tub, pot”), Old Armenian պոյտն (poytn, “pot, earthen pot”).

Noun

pot m (plural pots)

1. jar, canister, vessel
2. jackpot

Derived terms

• potet (“little jar”)

Etymology 2

Verb

pot

1. third-person singular present indicative of poder

Czech

Czech Wikipedia has an article on:

pot

Wikipedia ^cs

Etymology

Inherited from Old Czech pot, from Proto-Slavic *potъ (“sweat”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Noun

pot m inan

1. sweat

Declension

Related terms

Further reading

• pot in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
• pot in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɔt/

• audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: pot
• Rhymes: -ɔt

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch pot, from Old Dutch pot, from Frankish *pott, from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot”). Cognate with English pot (“pot”).

Noun

pot m (plural potten, diminutive potje n)

1. jar, pot, solid container
2. (Belgium) cooking pot

   Synonym: kookpot

3. kitty or pool (where stakes, etc., are centralized)
4. (Netherlands, vulgar) loo, crapper (toilet)

   Synonym: toiletpot

Derived terms

Descendants

• Afrikaans: pot
• Berbice Creole Dutch: poto
• Negerhollands: pot, put, potji
  • → Virgin Islands Creole: poty
• Papiamentu: pòchi (from the diminutive)
• Petjo: pot
• → Caribbean Javanese: pot
• → Indonesian: pot, poci (from the diminutive)

Etymology 2

Clipping of lollepot.

Noun

pot f (plural potten, diminutive potje n)

1. (derogatory) dyke (lesbian)

Derived terms

• potteus

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

pot

1. inflection of potten:
   1. first/second/third-person singular present indicative
   2. imperative

Anagrams

• top

French

Etymology 1

Inherited from Middle French pot, from Old French pot (“pot”), from Vulgar Latin pottum, pottus (“pot, jar”), from Frankish *pott, from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot, jar, tub”), from Proto-Indo-European *budn- (“a kind of vessel”). More at English pot.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /po/

  • audio

    (file)

  • Homophones: paux, peau, peaux, Pô, pots
  • Rhymes: -o
• (older, now chiefly Belgium) IPA^(key): /pɔ/

  • Audio (Belgium)

    (file)

  • Homophone: pots
  • Rhymes: -ɔ
• IPA^(key): /pɔt/, /pot/ (in some fixed terms like pot-au-feu, pot aux roses)

Noun

pot m (plural pots)

1. pot, jar, vase, tin, can, carton (a container of any of various materials)

   (with à indicates intended use): pot à épices — spice jar

   (with de indicates either actual/current use...): pot d’eau — vase of water

   (...or material): pot de verre — (glass) jar

2. cooking pot (any vessel used to cook food)
3. (cooking) dish
4. (childish) potty (the pot used when toilet-training children)
5. (colloquial) drink, jar, bevvy (alcoholic beverage)
6. (colloquial) do (UK), bash, drinks party (a small, informal party or celebration)
7. (card games) pot, kitty, pool (money staked at cards, etc.)
8. (informal) luck (success; chance occurrence, especially when favourable)
9. (oenology) a half-litre bottle or measure of wine
10. a pre-metric unit of measure, equivalent to 1.5 litres
11. a paper size, about 40 by 31 cm
12. (slang, vulgar) arse, ass (the buttocks)

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English pot.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɔt/

Noun

pot m (uncountable)

1. (Canada) pot, weed (cannabis, marijuana)

References

• Nouveau Petit Larousse illustré. Dictionnaire encyclopédique. Paris, Librairie Larousse, 1952, 146th edition

Further reading

• “pot”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé , 2012.

Indonesian

Etymology

From Dutch pot, from Middle Dutch pot, from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot”). Doublet of poci.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):
• Hyphenation: pot

Noun

pot (first-person possessive potku, second-person possessive potmu, third-person possessive potnya)

1. pot (a vessel used to hold soil for growing plants)
2. ellipsis of pispot.

Derived terms

Further reading

• “pot” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch pot, from Frankish *pott, from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot”).

Noun

pot m

1. pot, jar
2. can, jug

Inflection

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Descendants

• Dutch: pot
• Limburgish: pót

Further reading

• “pot (I)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “pot”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN

Middle English

Alternative forms

• potte, pott, poot, pote

Etymology

From Old English pott and Old French pot, both ultimately from Proto-Germanic *puttaz, from Proto-Indo-European *budnós.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɔt/

Noun

pot (plural pottes)

1. A pot; a circular receptacle or vessel:
   1. A cookpot (a pot used for cooking in)
   2. A pot used for storing substances (especially food or water)
   3. A pot used for ladling or serving liquids; a beaker.
   4. A measurement for the quantity of liquids.
   5. A pot of a certain material or manufacture:
      1. A ceramic pot or vessel.
      2. A pot or vessel made out of metal.
2. (rare) The top of the skull.
3. (rare) A shard of earthen material.

Related terms

Descendants

• English: pot
• Scots: pott, pat

References

• “pot(e, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-07-22.

Norman

Etymology

From Old French pot (“pot”), from Vulgar Latin pottum, pottus (“pot, jar”), from Frankish *pott, from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot, jar, tub”), from Proto-Indo-European *budn- (“a kind of vessel”).

Noun

pot m (plural pots)

1. (Jersey) pot

Derived terms

Old French

Etymology 1

From Vulgar Latin pottum, pottus (“pot, jar”), from Frankish *pott, from Proto-Germanic *puttaz (“pot, jar, tub”), from Proto-Indo-European *budn- (“a kind of vessel”). More at pot.

Noun

pot oblique singular, m (oblique plural poz or potz, nominative singular poz or potz, nominative plural pot)

1. pot (storage/cooking vessel)

Descendants

• → English: pot
• French: pot
• Norman: pot
• Asturian: pota
• Galician: pota

References

• Godefroy, Frédéric, Dictionnaire de l’ancienne langue française et de tous ses dialectes du IX^e au XV^e siècle (1881) (pot, supplement)

Etymology 2

see poeir.

Verb

pot

1. third-person singular present indicative of poeir

Descendants

• French: peut

Polish

Polish Wikipedia has an article on:

pot

Wikipedia ^pl

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *pȍtъ (“sweat”), from Proto-Balto-Slavic *paktas, from Proto-Indo-European pokʷ-tó-s, from the root *pekʷ- (“to cook”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɔt/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔt
• Syllabification: pot
• Homophones: pod, pod-

Noun

pot m inan

1. sweat

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

• pot in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• pot in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Etymology 1

Borrowed from French pot.

Noun

pot n (plural poturi)

1. (card games) pot

Declension

Etymology 2

Verb

pot

1. first-person singular present indicative of putea

   te pot vedea, prostule. ― I can see you, idiot.

2. first-person singular present subjunctive of putea

   am să pot să merg cu tine mâine dimineață ― I'll be able to go with you tomorrow morning.

3. third-person plural present indicative of putea

   calmează-te, nu pot să-ți străbată gândul. ― calm down, they can't read your mind.

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *potъ.

Noun

pȍt m (Cyrillic spelling по̏т)

1. (regional) sweat

   Synonym: znȏj

Slovene

Etymology 1

From Proto-Slavic *pǫtь, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *pántis, from Proto-Indo-European *póntoh₁s.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pòːt/
• Rhymes: -oːt
• Hyphenation: pot

Noun

pọ́t f or m inan or m anim

1. (inanimate) way, path

   Synonym: potka

2. (inanimate) trip, journey

   Synonyms: potovanje, cestovanje, popotovanje, rajža, vandranje

   Pot je trajala več dni. ― The trip lasted for multiple days.

3. (inanimate, physics) distance
4. (inanimate) way (method or manner)

   Synonyms: način, postopek, pristop

5. (inanimate) career (general course of action or conduct in life)

   Synonym: kariera

6. (animate, obsolete, only masculine) messenger

   Synonyms: brzotek, glasnik, kurir, sel, novičar, poročnik

7. (animate, historical, only masculine) a mediator who buys things in other towns on demand

   Synonym: potovec

8. (inanimate, rare) time (instance or occurrence)

   Synonyms: bart, -krat

Usage notes

The masculine gender is nowadays obsolete, except in some collocations, e.g. križev pot. For animate senses, however, is the only possible.

Declension

accsg=pọ̄t

• usual for inanimate senses, except for sense 'career' (but still possible)

n=

accsg=pọ̄t

• stylistically marked for most inanimate senses, but more common for sense 'career'

n=

• inanimate senses, obsolete

n=

• inanimate senses, obsolete

n=

• animate senses

n=

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Proto-Slavic *potъ, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *paktas, from Proto-Indo-European *pokʷtós.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /póːt/
• Rhymes: -oːt
• Hyphenation: pot

Noun

pọ̑t m inan

1. sweat

   Synonyms: znoj, rosa

Declension

Derived terms

See also

• cesta
• steza

Further reading

• “pot”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU, portal Fran
• “pot”, in Termania, Amebis
• See also the general references

Tatar

Noun

pot

1. (archaic) A unit of volume: 1 pot, the volume of 16 kg of water
2. (archaic) A unit of weight: 1 pot = 40 qadaq = 16.380 kg

Declension

2=qa
3=nı
4=ta
5=tan

See also

• Obsolete Tatar units of measurement on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English port.

Noun

pot

1. port