kettle
/ˈkɛtl/
noun
Origin
Old English
cetel — cauldron, pot
Overview
Meaning Now
- A vessel made of metal, typically with a lid, spout, and handle, used for boiling water.
- A large, rounded body of water or a depression in the land formed by a retreating glacier.
Literal older meaning
small pot
Language path
Old English → Middle English → Modern English
Earliest form
cetel
Earliest period
Old English
Journey
Historically, kettles were large cauldrons used over open fires for cooking and heating water. The modern domestic tea kettle evolved as a smaller, specialized version of the general-purpose cooking pot.
Evolution
- Old English
cetel
“a large pot for boiling”
- Middle English
ketel
“a pot for boiling water”
Shift from 'c' to 'k' spelling to indicate hard consonant sound
- Modern English
kettle
“a kitchen vessel for boiling water”
Connections
Word parts
kettle
root
pot
Related across languages
German
Kessel
boiler, kettle
Dutch
ketel
kettle, boiler
Old Norse
ketill
cauldron
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Related to kettle
External references use DefinedTerm semantics.