boil Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a painful sore with a hard core filled with pus
    furuncle.
  2. noun the temperature at which a liquid boils at sea level
    boiling point.
    • they brought the water to a boil
  3. verb come to the boiling point and change from a liquid to vapor
    • Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius
  4. verb immerse or be immersed in a boiling liquid, often for cooking purposes
    • boil potatoes
    • boil wool
  5. verb bring to, or maintain at, the boiling point
    • boil this liquid until it evaporates
  6. verb be agitated
    moil; churn; roil.
    • the sea was churning in the storm
  7. verb be in an agitated emotional state
    seethe.
    • The customer was seething with anger

WordNet

Boil intransitive verb
Etymology
OE. boilen, OF. boilir, builir, F. bouillir, fr. L. bullire to be in a bubbling motion, from bulla bubble; akin to Gr. , Lith. bumbuls. Cf. Bull an edict, Budge, v., and Ebullition.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Boiled present participle & verbal noun Boiling
Definitions
  1. To be agitated, or tumultuously moved, as a liquid by the generation and rising of bubbles of steam (or vapor), or of currents produced by heating it to the boiling point; to be in a state of ebullition; as, the water boils.
  2. To be agitated like boiling water, by any other cause than heat; to bubble; to effervesce; as, the boiling waves.
    He maketh the deep to boil like a pot. Job xii. 31.
  3. To pass from a liquid to an aëriform state or vapor when heated; as, the water boils away.
  4. To be moved or excited with passion; to be hot or fervid; as, his blood boils with anger.
    Then boiled my breast with flame and burning wrath. Surrey.
  5. To be in boiling water, as in cooking; as, the potatoes are boiling.
Boil transitive verb
Definitions
  1. To heat to the boiling point, or so as to cause ebullition; as, to boil water.
  2. To form, or separate, by boiling or evaporation; as, to boil sugar or salt.
  3. To subject to the action of heat in a boiling liquid so as to produce some specific effect, as cooking, cleansing, etc.; as, to boil meat; to boil clothes.
    The stomach cook is for the hall, And boileth meate for them all. Gower.
  4. To steep or soak in warm water. Obs.
    To try whether seeds be old or new, the sense can not inform; but if you boil them in water, the new seeds will sprout sooner. Bacon.
Boil noun
Definitions
  1. Act or state of boiling. Colloq.
Boil noun
Etymology
Influenced by boil, v. See Beal, Bile.
Definitions
  1. A hard, painful, inflamed tumor, which, on suppuration, discharges pus, mixed with blood, and discloses a small fibrous mass of dead tissue, called the core.

Webster 1913