1
: a round bulging vessel of greater length than breadth that is usually made of staves bound with hoops and has flat ends of equal diameter
2
a
: the amount contained in a barrel
especially
: the amount (such as 31 gallons of fermented beverage or 42 gallons of petroleum) fixed for a certain commodity used as a unit of measure
b
: a great quantity
3
: a drum or cylindrical part: such as
a
: the discharging tube of a gun
b
: the part of a fountain pen or of a pencil containing the ink or lead
c
: a cylindrical or tapering housing containing the optical components of a photographic-lens system and the iris diaphragm
d
: the fuel outlet from the carburetor on a gasoline engine
e
: the flat, cylindrical metal box that encloses the mainspring of a timepiece
4
: the trunk of a quadruped
barreled or barrelled; barreling or barrelling
: to put or pack in a barrel
: to move at a high speed or without hesitation
Synonyms
Noun
- abundance
- basketful
- boatload
- bucket
- bunch
- bundle
- bushel
- carload
- chunk
- deal
- dozen
- fistful
- gobs
- good deal
- heap
- hundred
- lashings [chiefly British]
- lashins
- loads
- lot
- mass
- mess
- mountain
- much
- multiplicity
- myriad
- oodles
- pack
- passel
- peck
- pile
- plateful
- plenitude
- plentitude
- plenty
- pot
- potful
- profusion
- quantity
- raft
- reams
- scads
- sheaf
- shipload
- sight
- slew
- spate
- stack
- store
- ton
- truckload
- volume
- wad
- wealth
- yard
Verb
- belt
- blast
- blaze
- blow
- bolt
- bomb [slang]
- bowl
- breeze
- bundle
- bustle
- buzz
- cannonball
- careen
- career
- chase
- course
- crack (on)
- dash
- drive
- fly
- hare
- hasten
- hie
- highball
- hotfoot (it)
- hump
- hurl
- hurry
- hurtle
- hustle
- jet
- jump
- motor
- nip
- pelt
- race
- ram
- rip
- rocket
- run
- rush
- rustle
- scoot
- scurry
- scuttle
- shoot
- speed
- step
- tear
- travel
- trot
- whirl
- whisk
- zip
- zoom
Examples of barrel in a Sentence
Noun
Oak barrels are used for aging the wine.
The price of oil is over 30 dollars a barrel.
They drank a whole barrel of beer.
the barrel of a gun
Verb
The truck went barreling down Main Street.
She came running out of her office and went barreling past us down the hall.
Recent Examples on the Web
Vivienne Walt, Fortune, 4 Apr. 2024
The liquid in the decanter came from 13-year-old barrels of whiskey that was distilled in September of 1999, the year Heaven Hill acquired the brand, and dumped in March of 2013.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 3 Apr. 2024
Treanor said global oil prices have increased this spring to more than $80 per barrel.
—Brianna Taylor, Sacramento Bee, 2 Apr. 2024
Residents in the city and a number of surrounding suburbs served by the sewerage district are asked to take shorter showers, save laundry and dishes for another day, and empty rain barrels regularly.
—Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 2 Apr. 2024
Brent crude, the international standard, surged $1.59 to $87.00 per barrel.
—Elaine Kurtenbach, Quartz, 29 Mar. 2024
Its barrel uses a high-quality composite material and incorporates dust and splash protection, while the front glass has an anti-smudge fluorine coating.
—PCMAG, 28 Mar. 2024
Biodiesel, including biodiesel feedstock and other edible oils, constitutes the largest refined petroleum import, averaging 3,000 barrels per day (BPD) in 2023.
—Robert Rapier, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Evolv’s scanners have reportedly flagged umbrellas as guns but failed to detect aluminum and steel tubes that were cut to look like gun barrels
Evolv’s scanners look like metal detectors but are equipped with AI.
—Gaby Del Valle, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024
Chris Pandolfo, Fox News, 4 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, the county is barreling toward this year's state primary and general elections.
—Sasha Hupka, The Arizona Republic, 29 Mar. 2024
In the clip, the five-time all-star can be seen barreling out of the arena’s parking lot in the hulking truck.
—Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 21 Mar. 2024
Tony Buzbee, Grossman’s lead attorney, has throughout the trial pointed the finger at her then-boyfriend, Scott Erickson, who was the first to barrel through the crosswalk.
—Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2024
Boll could do nothing but wait for news in Harbor Grace as Earhart barreled toward the United Kingdom.
—Shoshi Parks, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Mar. 2024
Authorities tell Fox News Digital Bracho, 33, was barreling down the highway the wrong way, going 70 miles per hour in a 40 mile per hour zone.
—Stepheny Price, Fox News, 12 Mar. 2024
But throughout the trial, Buzbee continued to point the finger at Erickson, who was the first to barrel through the crosswalk.
—Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2024
Authorities say Lightfoot barreled down Benton Boulevard in a white Ford, failing to stop for the red light.
—Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 24 Feb. 2024
Noun
Saudi reserves, in shallow sands, are so easily accessible that Aramco spends less than $10 to produce each barrel of oil.
—Vivienne Walt, Fortune, 4 Apr. 2024
The liquid in the decanter came from 13-year-old barrels of whiskey that was distilled in September of 1999, the year Heaven Hill acquired the brand, and dumped in March of 2013.
—Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 3 Apr. 2024
Treanor said global oil prices have increased this spring to more than $80 per barrel.
—Brianna Taylor, Sacramento Bee, 2 Apr. 2024
Residents in the city and a number of surrounding suburbs served by the sewerage district are asked to take shorter showers, save laundry and dishes for another day, and empty rain barrels regularly.
—Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 2 Apr. 2024
Brent crude, the international standard, surged $1.59 to $87.00 per barrel.
—Elaine Kurtenbach, Quartz, 29 Mar. 2024
Its barrel uses a high-quality composite material and incorporates dust and splash protection, while the front glass has an anti-smudge fluorine coating.
—PCMAG, 28 Mar. 2024
Biodiesel, including biodiesel feedstock and other edible oils, constitutes the largest refined petroleum import, averaging 3,000 barrels per day (BPD) in 2023.
—Robert Rapier, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Evolv’s scanners have reportedly flagged umbrellas as guns but failed to detect aluminum and steel tubes that were cut to look like gun barrels
Evolv’s scanners look like metal detectors but are equipped with AI.
—Gaby Del Valle, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024
Verb
The quake struck the sparsely populated, largely rural eastern county of Hualien, stranding hundreds in a national park as boulders barreled down mountains, cutting off roads.
—Chris Pandolfo, Fox News, 4 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, the county is barreling toward this year's state primary and general elections.
—Sasha Hupka, The Arizona Republic, 29 Mar. 2024
In the clip, the five-time all-star can be seen barreling out of the arena’s parking lot in the hulking truck.
—Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 21 Mar. 2024
Tony Buzbee, Grossman’s lead attorney, has throughout the trial pointed the finger at her then-boyfriend, Scott Erickson, who was the first to barrel through the crosswalk.
—Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2024
Boll could do nothing but wait for news in Harbor Grace as Earhart barreled toward the United Kingdom.
—Shoshi Parks, Smithsonian Magazine, 21 Mar. 2024
Authorities tell Fox News Digital Bracho, 33, was barreling down the highway the wrong way, going 70 miles per hour in a 40 mile per hour zone.
—Stepheny Price, Fox News, 12 Mar. 2024
But throughout the trial, Buzbee continued to point the finger at Erickson, who was the first to barrel through the crosswalk.
—Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2024
Authorities say Lightfoot barreled down Benton Boulevard in a white Ford, failing to stop for the red light.
—Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 24 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'barrel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English barayl, barel, borrowed from Anglo-French barel, baril (continental Old French barril), going back to Gallo-Romance *barrīculus, probably diminutive of *barrīca "cask, barrel" — more at barricade entry 2
Verb
verbal derivative of barrel entry 1
First Known Use
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense
Time Traveler
The first known use of barrel was
in the 14th century
Phrases Containing barrel
Dictionary Entries Near barrel
Cite this Entry
“Barrel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barrel. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
barrel
2 of 2 verb
barreled or barrelled; barreling or barrelling
: to travel at a high speed
barreling down the highway
More from Merriam-Webster on barrel
Nglish: Translation of barrel for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of barrel for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about barrel
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