potter
Other forms: potters; pottering; pottered
If you regularly make bowls and mugs out of clay, you can call yourself a potter. Potters shape soft clay either by pinching it with their fingers or turning it on a wheel while pulling and squeezing the moving clay.
After shaping and sometimes glazing or decorating a piece of pottery, a potter bakes it at a high temperature in a special oven called a kiln. The verb potter, "occupy one's self in a pleasant, unhurried way," comes from a different root from the noun — so a potter doesn't necessarily potter around her studio.
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a craftsperson who shapes pottery on a potter's wheel and bakes them it a kiln
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synonyms:
ceramicist, ceramist, thrower
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examples:
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Josiah Spode
English potter who started a pottery famous for its bone china (1754-1827)
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Josiah Wedgwood
English potter (1730-1795)
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type of:
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artificer, artisan, craftsman, journeyman
a skilled worker who practices some trade or handicraft
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Josiah Spode
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do random, unplanned work or activities; spend time idly
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synonyms:
futz, mess around, monkey, monkey around, muck about, muck around, putter, tinker
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work lightly
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move around aimlessly
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synonyms:
potter around, putter, putter around
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type of:
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move
move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion
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move
Vocabulary lists containing potter
Here's a roundup of some common last names that originated in professions, trades, and other jobs — along with some notable people who bear them. If you have one of these last names, it's possible that one of your ancestors did this kind of work for a living.
Marin moved across the country for college to try to escape her past. But when her best friend comes to visit, Marin must finally confront the memories she left behind. Learn key vocabulary from this novel, winner of the 2018 Printz Award.
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