barrel

barrel — noun

1. a tall, round container that bulges out around the middle and has flat circular

1.nounB1
Definition

a tall, round container that bulges out around the middle and has flat circular ends; usually built from wooden planks, metal, or thick plastic, and used for storing liquids like wine, beer, or rainwater.

Example

Nia rolled an empty wine barrel across the cellar floor.

common verb partner: roll a barrel

The old farm collected rainwater in a wooden barrel by the back door.

collocation: collect/store [liquid] in a barrel

Common collocations
  • wooden barrel
  • wine barrel
  • oak barrel
  • rain barrel
  • roll a barrel
  • tap a barrel
Synonyms
  • cask

    wooden barrel for wine, beer, or sherry; sounds traditional or old-fashioned.

  • drum

    metal or plastic barrel, usually for industrial liquids like oil or chemicals.

  • keg

    small metal barrel, especially for beer at a party or pub.

Grammar Patterns

a barrel of [liquid]

Usage Note

Often modified by the material (wooden, metal, plastic, oak) or the contents (wine, beer, oil). Frequently appears in the pattern 'a barrel of [liquid or food]'.

Common Mistakes

I bought a barrel water from the shop.
I bought a barrel of water from the shop.
use 'of' to link the barrel and its contents.
The wine is stored in barrel.
The wine is stored in a barrel.
countable noun, needs an article.

2. a unit used in the oil business to count how much crude oil is produced, traded,

2.nounB2
Definition

a unit used in the oil business to count how much crude oil is produced, traded, or used; one barrel equals about 159 litres (42 US gallons).

Example

Saudi Arabia pumps roughly nine million barrels of oil every day.

pattern: [number] barrels of oil

The price of crude jumped to ninety dollars a barrel last week.

collocation: dollars a barrel (price quoting)

Common collocations
  • barrels of oil
  • barrels per day
  • dollars a barrel
  • millions of barrels
Synonyms
  • bbl

    the standard written abbreviation in trading and shipping documents.

Grammar Patterns

[number] barrels of [substance]

Usage Note

Almost always tied to oil; for other liquids speakers usually say 'litres' or 'gallons' instead. Common in news headlines and financial reporting about energy markets.

Common Mistakes

The well makes 1000 barrel a day.
The well makes 1000 barrels a day.
use the plural form after numbers above one.

3. the long, narrow tube on a gun, rifle, or cannon; a bullet or shell flies out th

3.nounB2
Definition

the long, narrow tube on a gun, rifle, or cannon; a bullet or shell flies out through this tube when the weapon is fired.

Example

Sergeant Diaz cleaned the rifle barrel with a soft cloth and oil.

collocation: clean/oil a barrel

Smoke curled out of the cannon's barrel after the loud blast.

Common collocations
  • rifle barrel
  • gun barrel
  • long barrel
  • double-barrelled
Synonyms
  • muzzle

    the open end of the barrel, where the bullet leaves; a smaller, more specific part.

  • bore

    the inside surface of the barrel; technical term in gun manufacturing.

Grammar Patterns

the barrel of a [gun/rifle/cannon]

Usage Note

Almost always combined with a specific weapon ('rifle barrel', 'pistol barrel'). The compound forms 'long-barrelled' and 'short-barrelled' work as adjectives describing the gun.

Common Mistakes

He looked into the barrel from the gun.
He looked into the barrel of the gun.
use 'of', not 'from'.
Idioms

have someone over a barrel

idiom

to put someone in a difficult position where they are forced to do what you want because they have no real choice.

The landlord had Citlali over a barrel: pay double rent or move out by Sunday.

a barrel of laughs

idiom

a person, situation, or event that is very funny and entertaining; often used in a joking, sarcastic way to mean the opposite.

Spending five hours at the airport with two crying toddlers was just a barrel of laughs.

scrape the bottom of the barrel

idiom

to be forced to use the worst people or things that are left because all the better ones are already gone.

By picking that lazy intern, the manager was clearly scraping the bottom of the barrel.

lock, stock, and barrel

idiom

completely; including every part or detail of something.

The Wong family sold their bakery lock, stock, and barrel to a French chef from Lyon.

be like shooting fish in a barrel

idiom

Used to say that something is extremely easy to do.

For an experienced chef, making this sauce is like shooting fish in a barrel.

Winning that game was like shooting fish in a barrel for our team.

lock, stock and barrel

idiom

Including every part or item; completely.

They bought the entire company lock, stock and barrel.

She moved her apartment lock, stock and barrel to a new city.

(get/have somebody) over a barrel

idiom

To put someone in a difficult situation where they have no choice but to do what you want.

The landlord has us over a barrel; we must pay or leave.

With that evidence, the prosecutor had the suspect over a barrel.

scrape (the bottom of) the barrel

idiom

To use the least desirable or lowest quality options because better ones are not available.

Hiring that intern felt like scraping the bottom of the barrel.

With no good candidates left, the team was scraping the bottom of the barrel.

barrel — verb

Word family

  • barrelled
    adjectiveC1
  • barrelful
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All five words name large round containers, but they differ in material, size, and the kind of liquid inside. 'Barrel' is the most general word and the only one most learners will need; it can be wooden, metal, or plastic, and is the right choice for everyday writing about wine, oil, or rainwater. 'Cask' specifically suggests a wooden barrel for fine drinks like whisky or sherry, with an old-fashioned, traditional flavour. 'Drum' points to a tall metal or plastic container, often used in factories for oil, fuel, or chemicals. 'Keg' is a small metal barrel, almost always for beer at a party, bar, or pub. 'Vat' is the giant brother of the family — an open-topped tank used in breweries and dye works. So you might age whisky in a cask, store oil in a drum, tap a keg of beer, and ferment beer in a huge vat — but you can call almost any of them a 'barrel' in casual speech.

barrel ↗caskdrum ↗kegvat

Common collocations

Nouns

  • barrel of oil
  • barrel of wine
  • barrel of monkeys
  • wine barrel
  • rifle barrel
  • rain barrel

Phrases

Prepositions

  • of (a barrel of oil/wine)
  • in (stored in a barrel)
  • by (sold by the barrel)

Etymology

Late LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishModern English

The word entered English in the late 1300s from Old French 'baril', meaning a small cask. The deeper origin is uncertain, but most scholars connect it to Late Latin 'barriclus', a small jar or container. The 'tube of a gun' meaning appeared in the 1640s, when early guns had cylindrical metal tubes that looked like miniature barrels. The verb 'to barrel' meaning 'to rush' is much younger — American English from the early 1900s — and probably comes from the picture of a heavy barrel rolling downhill out of control.