pool

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈpül 

1

a(1)

: a small and rather deep body of usually fresh water

(2)

: a quiet place in a stream

(3)

: a body of water forming above a dam

b

: something resembling a pool

a pool of light

2

: a small body of standing liquid

3

: a continuous area of porous sedimentary rock that yields petroleum or gas

4

: swimming pool

pool

2 of 4

verb (1)

pooled; pooling; pools

intransitive verb

1

: to form a pool

2

of blood : to accumulate or become static (as in the veins of a bodily part)

pool

3 of 4

noun (2)

1

a

: an aggregate stake to which each player of a game has contributed

b

: all the money bet by a number of persons on a particular event

2

a

: a game played on an English billiard table in which each of the players stakes a sum and the winner takes all

b

: any of various games of billiards played on an oblong table having 6 pockets with usually 15 object balls

3

: an aggregation of the interests or property of different persons made to further a joint undertaking by subjecting them to the same control and a common liability

4

: a readily available supply: such as

a

: the whole quantity of a particular material present in the body and available for function or the satisfying of metabolic demands

b

: a body product (such as blood) collected from many donors and stored for later use

c

: a group of people available for some purpose

a shrinking pool of applicants

typing pool

5

: gene pool

6

: a group of journalists from usually several news organizations using pooled resources (such as television equipment) to produce shared coverage especially of events to which access is restricted

pool

4 of 4

verb (2)

pooled; pooling; pools

transitive verb

: to combine (things, such as resources) in a common pool or effort

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• billabong [Australian]
• mere [chiefly British]
• puddle
• stank [British dialect]
• well

Noun (2)

• force
• help
• labor force
• manpower
• personnel
• staff
• workforce

Examples of pool in a Sentence

Noun (1)

a secluded pool that has long been a locally favored spot for skinny-dipping

Noun (2)

a large pool of applicants for the summer internship

a pool of ideas ready to use whenever the cartoonist needs to meet a deadline

office workers setting up a pool for the collective purchase of lottery tickets

two coworkers split last week's football pool

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Almost every ship in the fleet offers the Solarium, an adults-only section with a pool and whirlpool, a sundeck, and a bar. —Elizabeth Heath, Travel + Leisure, 11 May 2024

Moreover, the anomalies from the storm are constantly shifting through the ionosphere like ripples in a pool. —Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 10 May 2024

The pool wasn’t cared for and chemicals were not used. —Nate Trela, USA TODAY, 10 May 2024

Reals’ absolute favorite button-down for the beach, lake, or pool is this boyfriend shirt from Victoria's Secret Swim. —Grace Smith, Peoplemag, 10 May 2024

Perfect to drink on a warm Hamptons’ evening or your backyard pool no matter the location. —Mike Desimone and Jeff Jenssen, Robb Report, 9 May 2024

The court officers said that someone in the pool violated the court order by a photograph of Trump from the aisle, while walking into the well. —Graham Kates, CBS News, 9 May 2024

After that, the final mechanical royalty pool is determined by subtracting out the performance monies from the all-in pool. —Kristin Robinson, Billboard, 9 May 2024

Most notably, the saloon and pool hall on the corner (in the background of the postcard) featured an opera house and dance hall upstairs, funded in part by donations from other local merchants. —Randy Mason, Kansas City Star, 8 May 2024

Verb

Creating data partnerships and collaboration agreements to pool data in place is still a manual process. —William Mullane, USA TODAY, 12 May 2024

But Trump’s tax advisers took the position that pooling the Chicago tower’s finances with other businesses entitled him to declare even more tax-reducing losses from his Chicago investment. —Paul Kiel, Fortune, 11 May 2024

The Grand Final Last year, for the first time, viewers in the U.S. were able to vote for their favorite Eurovision performances – though those votes got pooled with other non-participating countries around the world. —Glen Weldon, NPR, 9 May 2024

For example, parents could pool donations to replace classroom items like a printer or old textbooks. —Marina Johnson, The Indianapolis Star, 7 May 2024

There is no central repository of vaccine recipients, nor of medical records, and no easy to way to pool these data. —Apoorva Mandavilli, New York Times, 3 May 2024

Dedicated butlers are efficient and wildly hospitable, doing everything from procuring dinner reservations to pool toys. —Hannah Seligson, Travel + Leisure, 2 May 2024

Emergency preparedness techniques include knowing the basics of CPR and educating your child on how to call 911. Items crucial to pool safety Pool fences and alarms As suggested by the expert, pool fences at least 4 feet tall and pool alarms can deter pool entrance during unsupervised times. —Mason Leib, ABC News, 1 May 2024

But if the canal were leaking, there should have been water pooling around him. —Cheri Lucas Rowlands, Longreads, 30 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English, from Old English pōl; akin to Old High German pfuol pool

Noun (2)

French poule, literally, hen, from Old French, feminine of poul cock — more at pullet

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Verb (1)

1626, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1708, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (2)

circa 1780, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing pool

• car pool
• dirty pool
• gene pool
• infinity pool
• motor pool
• paddling pool
• pool resources
• swimming pool
• tide pool
• wading pool
• wave pool

Kids Definition

pool

1 of 4 noun

ˈpül 

1

: a small deep body of water

2

: a small body of standing liquid : puddle

3

: swimming pool

pool

2 of 4 verb

: to form a pool

pool

3 of 4 noun

1

: the money bet by a number of persons on an event or in a game

2

: a game played on a billiard table having six pockets with usually 15 object balls

3

: a common fund for making investments

4

a

: a readily available supply

a pool of talent

a typing pool

b

: a group sharing in some activity

a car pool

pool

4 of 4 verb

: to contribute to a common fund or effort

pooled their resources

Etymology

Noun

Old English pōl "a small body of water"

Noun

from French poule "the amount of money bet in a card game," literally, "hen," derived from early French poul "a male chicken, cock" — related to pullet

Medical Definition

pool

1 of 2 intransitive verb

ˈpül 

of blood

: to accumulate or become static (as in the veins of a bodily part)

blood pooled in his legs

pool

2 of 2 noun

: a readily available supply: as

a

: the whole quantity of a particular material present in the body and available for function or the satisfying of metabolic demands see gene pool, metabolic pool

b

: a body product (as blood) collected from many donors and stored for later use

Legal Definition

pool

1 of 2 noun

1

: an aggregation of the interests, obligations, or undertakings of several parties working together

an insurance pool

2

: a group of people available for some purpose see also jury pool

pool

2 of 2 transitive verb

: to combine (as assets or votes) in a common form or effort

especially : to combine (interests) so as not to have a merger of companies considered a purchase for accounting purposes