on the boil
idiom
1
British, informal
: in a state of activity or development
The deal is still on the boil.
kept their romance on the boil
2
: on a hot burner/stove so that a liquid would boil
She put the kettle (of water) on the boil.
Examples of on the boil in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The big story While temperatures are below freezing point at Davos, geopolitical tensions have been on the boil as U.S. President Donald Trump's pursuit of Greenland has thrown transatlantic relations in disarray.
—
Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 22 Jan. 2026
Unfit is among a number of projects on the boil for Kohl who broke out with his 2013 short The Slaughter which played in SXSW and Locarno.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 14 Nov. 2025
So yeah, there’s a lot on the boil, which is great and so humbling to have that interest from audiences in these great theater cities in the work.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 1 May 2025
Shares of Samyang Foods have been on the boil, up 265% over the past year, fueled by the raging popularity of its spicy Buldak (fire chicken in Korean) instant noodles.
—Zinnia Lee, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
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Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 22 Jan. 2026
Unfit is among a number of projects on the boil for Kohl who broke out with his 2013 short The Slaughter which played in SXSW and Locarno.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 14 Nov. 2025
So yeah, there’s a lot on the boil, which is great and so humbling to have that interest from audiences in these great theater cities in the work.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 1 May 2025
Shares of Samyang Foods have been on the boil, up 265% over the past year, fueled by the raging popularity of its spicy Buldak (fire chicken in Korean) instant noodles.
—Zinnia Lee, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“On the boil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on%20the%20boil. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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