cauldron
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of cauldron
1250–1300; Middle English, alteration (by association with Latin caldus warm) of Middle English cauderon < Anglo-French, equivalent to caudere (< Late Latin caldāria; see caldera) + -on noun suffix
Explanation
A cauldron is a big pot used over an open fire. You may picture the witches in Shakespeare's Macbeth hovering over a cauldron of "Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog" — yum! The cauldron, while conjuring up images of — well, conjuring — actually came from the Latin root calidus, meaning "hot." We can see this root in other Latin-based languages, including the Spanish caliente and Italian caldo. In English, the word became cauldron — a creepy name for a very useful pot.
Vocabulary lists containing cauldron
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act IV
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Boy: Tales of Childhood
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The $8 cauldron set a world record for the smallest popcorn container.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 6, 2026
But ever since a pair of Italian ski legends lit the cauldron in Milan, just 18 months after the summer fête of Paris, the decline of the Games has felt like a distant memory.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 15, 2026
In Milan, the pulsating cauldron inspired by the sun will burn at Arco della Pace.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 6, 2026
The Games will be spread across seven venues throughout northeastern Italy and a second Olympic cauldron will be lit in Cortina d'Ampezzo in the Dolomite mountains.
From Barron's • Feb. 5, 2026
“If I help you bear the cauldron to Caer Dallben, it shall be on my own conditions.”
From "The Black Cauldron" by Lloyd Alexander
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
