好词典

kettles

UK //ˈket.əlz//US //ˈket̬.əlz//

词源

源自古北欧语 'ketill'(锅),与古英语 'cetel' 同源,最终源自拉丁语 'catillus'(小碗)。地质学意义首次记录于1866年,因地形类似倒置的水壶而得名。

noun

❶ 指用于烧水的容器,通常有壶嘴和把手,多为金属或陶瓷制成。现代电水壶也属于此类。

“She put two kettles on the stove to boil water for tea.”

(她把两个水壶放在炉子上烧水泡茶。)

“The antique copper kettles were displayed in the kitchen museum.”

(那些古董铜壶陈列在厨房博物馆里。)

❶ 地质学术语,指冰川运动形成的圆形洼地或盆地地形。

“Glacial kettles often become lakes after the ice melts.”

(冰川壶穴在冰融化后常形成湖泊。)

“The hiking trail passes several deep kettles formed during the Ice Age.”

(徒步路线途经几个冰河时期形成的深壶穴。)

同义词:teakettle, water boiler, geyser (for electric types), pit (geological sense), depression

verb

❶ 将某物装入水壶或类似容器的动作,这个用法较为罕见。

“She kettled the fresh spring water for their journey.”

(她把清泉水装进水壶供旅途使用。)

“The workers were kettling molten metal into molds.”

(工人们正将熔融金属浇注进模具。)

同义词:pour, decant

常见短语

a different kettle of fish — 英式俚语,表示完全不同的情况或事物,强调两者不可相提并论。

“Writing emails is easy, but drafting legal contracts is a different kettle of fish.”

(写邮件很简单,但起草法律合同完全是另一回事。)

kettles of fish — 指多个需要处理的复杂情况或问题,通常用于否定语境。

“We've got kettles of fish to deal with before the product launch.”

(在产品发布前我们还有一大堆棘手问题要处理。)