Meaning & use
water butt
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountableBritish
A large barrel or tank, usually outdoors, that catches and stores rainwater from a roof for use in the garden.
Grammar: Countable: install a water butt, two water butts.
Patterns
- fill a water butt
- collect rainwater in a water butt
We connected a water butt to the shed gutter to save rainwater.
The water butt was full after the storm.
She fills her watering can from the water butt.
Word forms
| plural | water butts |
|---|
Common combinations
- fill the water butt
- A single shower won't fill the water butt.
- water butt lid
- Keep the water butt lid on to stop mosquitoes.
- connect a water butt
- He connected a water butt to the downpipe.
- empty water butt
- The water butt was empty after the dry spell.
- rainwater from the water butt
- Rainwater from the water butt is best for plants.
Synonyms and how they differ
- rain barrel
- Rain barrel is the American equivalent and means the same thing, but sounds unfamiliar in British speech.
- cistern
- A cistern is a tank for storing water, often indoors or underground, so it is broader and more technical than water butt.
- rainwater tank
- Rainwater tank is the common Australian term and often means a much larger storage unit than a typical water butt.
Word family
Commonly confused: water butt or butt?
water butt vs butt
Butt has other meanings, such as the end of something or a person's bottom. In water butt it means barrel.
Practice
To save money on the water bill, Tom put a ___ under the roof gutter to catch rain for the vegetable patch.
Choose one answer.
A water butt is a barrel for collecting rainwater. A water bottle is for drinking and a water cooler is a drinks dispenser.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “water butt”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.