Meaning & use
cauldron
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Meanings
nouncountable
A large, deep metal pot used for boiling liquids, especially over a fire.
Grammar: Countable; takes a plural. Common in historical, camping, and cooking descriptions.
Patterns
- a bubbling cauldron
- over a cauldron
- cauldron of soup
A black cauldron hung over the open fire.
The kitchen used a huge cauldron for soup during the festival.
nounusually singularfigurative
A place or situation full of intense activity, strong emotion, or conflict.
Grammar: Usually singular in the fixed pattern a cauldron of something.
Patterns
- a cauldron of unrest
- a cauldron of emotions
- a cauldron of rumors
The capital became a cauldron of rumor after the vote.
Her mind was a cauldron of excitement and fear before the interview.
Word forms
| plural | cauldrons |
|---|
Common combinations
- bubbling cauldron
- Steam rose from the bubbling cauldron.
- over an open fire
- The stew cooked in a cauldron over an open fire.
- cauldron of unrest
- High prices turned the district into a cauldron of unrest.
- cauldron of emotion
- The farewell was a cauldron of emotion for the team.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pot
- Pot is the general everyday word; cauldron suggests a large, deep, often old-fashioned pot.
- kettle
- A kettle is usually smaller and shaped for heating water, not for cooking stews over a fire.
- turmoil
- Turmoil fits the figurative sense of confusion, but it does not keep the boiling-pot image.
- vortex
- Vortex suggests a whirling force that pulls things in; a cauldron emphasizes heated intensity.
Commonly confused: cauldron or colander? cauldron or caldron?
cauldron vs colander
A colander is a bowl with holes for draining food; a cauldron is a deep pot for boiling.
cauldron vs caldron
Caldron is an accepted less common spelling, especially in American English.
Practice
After the blackout, the neighborhood became a ___ of rumor and fear.
Choose one answer.
The figurative phrase is “a cauldron of rumor and fear,” suggesting heated intensity. A pot, kettle, or pan can hold things but lacks this fixed figurative force.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cauldron”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.