ladle
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A spoon-shaped vessel with a long handle.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
layduhlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈleɪdəl
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A spoon-shaped vessel with a long handle; frequently used to transfer liquids from one container to another
A deep-bowled spoonlike utensil with a long, usually curved, handle.
The float of a mill wheel; a ladle board.
An instrument for drawing the charge of a cannon.
A ring, with a handle or handles fitted to it, for carrying shot.
metallurgy
A container used in a foundry or steel mill to transport and pour out molten metal.
verb
Remove with or as if with a ladle
transitive
To pour or serve something with a ladle.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Rare
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A spoon-shaped vessel with a long handle; frequently used to transfer liquids from one container to another
Used this way, ladle is a specialist word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. This is a nautical use: it is standard at sea and largely unfamiliar ashore.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Clinical and technical
- Usage feel
- Technical and specialized
Where it naturally appears
- Sailing/maritime
- Technical/specialist writing
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use ladle
- “Ladle soup into the bowl.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: remove with or as if with a ladle
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.