funnel

funnel — noun

1. a tool with a broad top that narrows to a slender pipe, used for guiding substan

1.nounB1
Definition

a tool with a broad top that narrows to a slender pipe, used for guiding substances such as water, oil, or flour into jars and bottles with small mouths

Example

Constanza used a funnel to pour the cooking oil into the small bottle without spilling any.

used a funnel to pour [liquid] into [container]

The science kit came with a small plastic funnel for filling the beakers with water.

funnel for filling [container]

Common collocations
  • metal funnel
  • plastic funnel
  • pour through a funnel
  • use a funnel
Synonyms
  • pourer

    less common; sometimes used for kitchen gadgets but not standard

Usage Note

Countable; often described by material (metal, plastic, glass) or context (kitchen, lab, automotive).

Common Mistakes

I used a tunnel to pour water into the bottle.
I used a funnel to pour water into the bottle.
A tunnel is a long underground passage; a funnel is a pouring tool.

2. a tall metal pipe on a ship, steam train, or factory through which smoke and gas

2.nounB1
Definition

a tall metal pipe on a ship, steam train, or factory through which smoke and gases are released into the air

Example

The old steamship had two black funnels releasing thick smoke into the grey sky.

Andrés climbed a hill to watch the steam train pass, its funnel puffing white clouds.

funnel puffing [smoke/steam]

Common collocations
  • ship's funnel
  • black funnel
  • funnel smoke
  • steam train funnel
Synonyms
  • smokestack

    more common for factories and power plants; 'funnel' is preferred for ships

  • chimney

    used for buildings; less common for ships and trains

Usage Note

On ships, funnels (also called smokestacks) often carry the company colours or logo. On steam trains, the funnel releases steam as well as smoke.

3. the series of stages a potential customer passes through, from first learning ab

3.nounB2
Definition

the series of stages a potential customer passes through, from first learning about a product to finally deciding to buy it, where fewer people remain at each stage

Example

Meera drew the sales funnel on the whiteboard to show how most visitors browse but few actually buy.

sales funnel: marketing stages from awareness to purchase

At the top of the marketing funnel, thousands of people see the advertisement each day.

Common collocations
  • sales funnel
  • marketing funnel
  • top of the funnel
  • bottom of the funnel
  • conversion funnel
Synonyms
  • pipeline

    broader term used in sales for all potential deals at different stages

Usage Note

Almost always used in marketing and business. Common modifiers: 'sales funnel', 'marketing funnel', 'conversion funnel'. The 'top of the funnel' is the awareness stage; the 'bottom of the funnel' is the purchase decision.

Common Mistakes

We need to widen the sales tunnel.
We need to widen the sales funnel.
The marketing concept uses 'funnel', not 'tunnel', because it narrows like a funnel.

4. any object or formation that is wider at one end and narrower at the other, rese

4.nounB1
Definition

any object or formation that is wider at one end and narrower at the other, resembling the shape of a kitchen funnel

Example

A dark funnel cloud dropped from the thundercloud and touched the ground near the farm.

funnel cloud: a tornado-shaped cloud formation

Sumin showed the class how to roll paper into a funnel shape for the water experiment.

funnel shape: rolled paper forming a cone

Common collocations
  • funnel-shaped
  • funnel cloud
  • funnel of light
  • form a funnel
Synonyms
  • cone

    broader and more common; 'funnel' specifically implies a hollow passage through the narrow end

Usage Note

Often used in compound forms: 'funnel-shaped', 'funnel cloud' (meteorology). Describes any cone-like form that narrows to an opening.

funnel — verb

Word family

  • funnel-shaped
    adjectiveB2
  • funneling
    nounC1
  • funneled
    adjectiveB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/2

Channel, route, direct, and siphon all overlap with funnel in the sense of sending resources to a target, but each carries a different image. Channel suggests a smooth path or medium (like water flowing in a canal) and is the most neutral alternative. Route emphasises the planned path the resources follow, often physical (e.g. route supplies through a warehouse). Direct is the broadest word — it simply means to aim toward a target without any implication of the path being restricted. Siphon has a negative connotation of secretly moving resources away for one's own gain (e.g. siphon funds from a charity). Funnel sits between channel and route on the spectrum: it suggests the resources are concentrated and pushed through a narrowing path, often under deliberate control. For example, 'the company funneled all its profits into research' implies a focused, somewhat forceful concentration that 'directed profits' would not convey.

channel ↗route ↗direct ↗siphon

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • funnel-shaped
  • sales funnel
  • funnel cloud
  • funnel of light

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word funnel entered English around the 1400s from Old French 'fonil' or 'founel', which came from Latin 'infundibulum' — meaning a funnel or hopper. The Latin word was built from 'infundere' (to pour in), combining 'in-' (in) and 'fundere' (to pour). The earliest use in English was for the pouring utensil; the ship-chimney sense appeared in the 1800s during the age of steam, and the business-process sense is a much more recent figurative extension from the 1900s.