pressure cooker

noun

1
: an airtight utensil for quick cooking or preserving of foods by means of high-temperature steam under pressure
2
: a situation or environment that is fraught with emotional or social pressures
pressure-cook verb

Examples of pressure cooker in a Sentence

The new boss has turned the office into a pressure cooker.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Airplanes are, quite literally, a pressure cooker for emotions. Milad Haghani, CNN Money, 6 June 2025 Gaël Monfils likely doesn’t come back from two sets down against Hugo Dellien in the first set anywhere but Chatrier at night, a court which the 38-year-old beating heart of French men’s tennis can turn into a pressure cooker like no one else. Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 30 May 2025 The claustrophobia of having no privacy while having no company is evoked to create a pressure cooker environment where violence might erupt at any moment. Sophie Monks Kaufman, IndieWire, 16 May 2025 Five-year plans can become pressure cookers disguised as roadmaps. Zoya Hasan, Forbes.com, 16 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for pressure cooker

Word History

First Known Use

1915, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of pressure cooker was in 1915

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pressure cooker.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pressure%20cooker. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

pressure cooker

noun
: a utensil for cooking or preserving foods by means of steam under pressure
pressure-cook
ˌpresh-ər-ˈku̇k
verb

More from Merriam-Webster on pressure cooker

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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