Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A small wooden barrel or covered vessel.
- noun Any of several British units of capacity, usually equal to about 1/4 of a barrel or 9 gallons (34 liters).
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A measure of capacity, usually the fourth part of a barrel, and varying in magnitude with the barrel.
- noun A small wooden vessel or cask of no determinate capacity, used chiefly for butter, tallow, soap, etc.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun engraving A varying measure of capacity, usually being the fourth part of a barrel; specifically, a measure equal to nine imperial gallons.
- noun U.S. A small wooden vessel or cask of indeterminate size, -- used for butter, lard, etc.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun US A small wooden vessel or cask of indeterminate size, -- used for butter, lard, etc.
- noun A weight measure for butter, equalling 56 pounds.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a British unit of capacity equal to 9 imperial gallons
- noun a small wooden keg
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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This particular firkin is reserved for thirsty Long Island beer enthusiasts.
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This particular firkin is reserved for thirsty Long Island beer enthusiasts.
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This particular firkin is reserved for thirsty Long Island beer enthusiasts.
LENNDEVOURS: 2008
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This particular firkin is reserved for thirsty Long Island beer enthusiasts.
Donavan Hall 2008
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Eight gallons make a measure called a firkin, in liquid substances, and a bushel, dry.
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Eight gallons make a measure called a firkin, in liquid substances, and a bushel, dry.
Public Papers 1775
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"firkin" - a small keg where cask ale is fermented.
News By Andy Rathbun 2010
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"firkin" - a small keg where cask ale is fermented.
News By Andy Rathbun 2010
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The cask of Oakham Bishops Farewell is a full firkin which is about 80 pints.
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The cask of Oakham Bishops Farewell is a full firkin which is about 80 pints.
Donavan Hall 2008
chained_bear commented on the word firkin
A small cask for liquids, fish, butter, etc., originally containing a quarter of a ‘barrel’ or half a ‘kilderkin’.
February 13, 2007
reesetee commented on the word firkin
There's a Firkin Tavern not far from where I work. Motto: "The Best Firkin Tavern in Town!" They make liberal use of the fact that the word sounds so much like the F-bomb. (I also like that it serves "sammiches" instead of "sandwiches.") ;-)
Apparently there's also a restaurant chain picking up on the idea. Oh well.
February 13, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word firkin
I've been using "firkin" at work as much as possible lately. Carefully. Our receptionist doesn't bat an eye anymore when I say "Have a nice firkin day."
February 15, 2007
reesetee commented on the word firkin
That's firkin excellent. Probably doesn't hurt that you're all 18th-centuryish there. :-)
February 15, 2007
sionnach commented on the word firkin
On the other hand, if you asked her about her merkin, you might end up in a lawsuit.
February 15, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word firkin
Or, if I wanted a black eye and a harassment suit, I could say "Have a nice firkin merkin."
Sorry. Someone had to say it.
February 16, 2007
reesetee commented on the word firkin
Well, that wouldn't be so bad unless the person you were calling a firkin merkin was named, say, gherkin. Then you'd have to say, "Have a nice firkin merkin, Gherkin."
February 16, 2007
uselessness commented on the word firkin
Anyone named "Gherkin" has enough trouble already without me throwing my two cents in.
February 16, 2007
sionnach commented on the word firkin
I knitted you a jerkin for your firkin merkin, Gherkin. Now I expect a limerick in return.
February 17, 2007
uselessness commented on the word firkin
I once had a coworker, Gherkin
Who routinely adjusted her merkin
Unaware that we knew
She did the taboo
And thusly is no longer workin'
Um... the title is "Have a Nice Firkin Day!"
February 17, 2007
reesetee commented on the word firkin
HA! Splendid! Best firkin limerick I've heard in quite a while.
February 17, 2007
sionnach commented on the word firkin
props to uselessness for a most excellent limerick!
February 19, 2007
reesetee commented on the word firkin
Update: The Firkin Tavern (mentioned below)? Went there yesterday. Got food poisoning. Wouldn't go there again if my firkin life depended on it.
May 18, 2007
oroboros commented on the word firkin
Some bad ole germs were lurkin' at the Ferkin, I'm certain.
May 18, 2007
uselessness commented on the word firkin
*awkward smirk*
*cough*
*looks away*
May 18, 2007
reesetee commented on the word firkin
Yes they were. Firkin germs. For all I know it was the gherkins.
May 19, 2007
jorge999 commented on the word firkin
ODE TO MODERATION
Overindulge, my lads at your peril:
A firkin here, a firkin there...
and pretty soon
you’re over a barrel.
--jorge999
November 14, 2009
Jubjub commented on the word firkin
Firkin Robert Frost firkin firkins "forty firkins" in his firkin firkinly poem "Directive." (said in the voice of a displaced Smurf.)
November 14, 2009
chained_bear commented on the word firkin
"Have a large firkin, put in a layer of sliced tomatoes, then one of onions, next one of peppers, lastly cabbage; sprinkle over some of the mustard seed, repeat the layers again, and so on.... skim it well and turn it into the firkin. Let it stand twenty-four hours, then pour the whole into a large kettle, and let it boil five minutes; turn into the firkin, and stand away for future use."
—Jane Warren, The Economical Cook Book, ca. 1882, quoted in Susan Williams, Savory Suppers and Fashionable Feasts: Dining in Victorian America (New York: Pantheon Books, 1985), 271
May 4, 2010
reesetee commented on the word firkin
Noooo! Not the firkins again!
May 4, 2010