vessel
Other forms: vessels
What do a canoe, a soda can, and your arteries have in common? Each one is a type of vessel. A vessel can be a ship, a container for holding liquids, or a tube that transports blood throughout your body.
Vessel has a number of different meanings, yet all of them relate in some way to liquids and transportation. This relationship in meaning has existed in language for a long time; the word vessel comes from the Latin word, vascellum, which also means both “vase” and “ship.” The use of the word vessel in reference to “blood vessels” came about in English during the 14th century.
Definitions of vessel
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an object used as a container (especially for liquids)types:autoclave, steriliser, sterilizera device for heating substances above their boiling point; used to manufacture chemicals or to sterilize surgical instrumentsbasina bowl-shaped vessel; usually used for holding food or liquidsbatha vessel containing liquid in which something is immersed (as to process it or to maintain it at a constant temperature or to lubricate it)bath, bathing tub, bathtub, tuba relatively large open container that you fill with water and use to wash the bodybedpana shallow vessel used by a bedridden patient for defecation and urinationbone-ash cup, cupel, refractory pota small porous bowl made of bone ash used in assaying to separate precious metals from e.g. leadbottlea glass or plastic vessel used for storing drinks or other liquids; typically cylindrical without handles and with a narrow neck that can be plugged or cappedbottle, feeding bottle, nursing bottlea vessel fitted with a flexible teat and filled with milk or formula; used as a substitute for breast feeding infants and very young childrenbowla round vessel that is open at the top; used chiefly for holding food or liquids;censer, thuriblea container for burning incense (especially one that is swung on a chain in a religious ritual)crucible, melting pota vessel made of material that does not melt easily; used for high temperature chemical reactionsdrinking vessela vessel intended for drinkingeye cup, eyebath, eyecupa small vessel with a rim curved to fit the orbit of the eye; use to apply medicated or cleansing solution to the eyeballflagona large metal or pottery vessel with a handle and spout; used to hold alcoholic beverages (usually wine)jara vessel (usually cylindrical) with a wide mouth and without handlesladlea spoon-shaped vessel with a long handle; frequently used to transfer liquids from one container to anothermonstrance, ostensorium(Roman Catholic Church) a vessel (usually of gold or silver) in which the consecrated Host is exposed for adorationmortara bowl-shaped vessel in which substances can be ground and mixed with a pestlemullera vessel in which wine is mulledpoachera cooking vessel designed to poach food (such as fish or eggs)potmetal or earthenware cooking vessel that is usually round and deep; often has a handle and lidretorta vessel where substances are distilled or decomposed by heatsteepera vessel (usually a pot or vat) used for steepingtina vessel (box, can, pan, etc.) made of tinplate and used mainly in bakingurceolea vessel that holds water for washing the handswater jacketa container filled with water that surrounds a machine to cool it; especially that surrounding the cylinder block of an enginewella cavity or vessel used to contain liquidalembican obsolete kind of container used for distillation; two retorts connected by a tubeamphoraan ancient jar with two handles and a narrow neck; used to hold oil or wineaquarium, fish tank, marine museuma tank or pool or bowl filled with water for keeping live fish and underwater animalsaspersoriumthe basin or other vessel that holds holy water in Roman Catholic Churchesauxiliary boiler, donkey boiler(nautical) an extra boiler (as a ship's boiler that is used while the ship is in port)beakera flatbottomed jar made of glass or plastic; used for chemistrybeer bottlea bottle that holds beerbideta basin for washing genitals and anal areabirdbathan ornamental basin (usually in a garden) for birds to bathe inbutta large cask (especially one holding a volume equivalent to 2 hogsheads or 126 gallons)cannikina wooden bucketcarboya large bottle for holding corrosive liquids; usually cushioned in a special containercoffeepottall pot in which coffee is brewedcrusesmall jar; holds liquid (oil or water)demijohnlarge bottle with a short narrow neck; often has small handles at neck and is enclosed in wickerworkdigesterautoclave consisting of a vessel in which plant or animal materials are digesteddippera ladle that has a cup with a long handledixiea large metal pot (12 gallon camp kettle) for cooking; used in military campsdredging bucketa bucket for lifting material from a channel or riverbedDutch oveniron or earthenware cooking pot; used for stewsemesis basina basin used by bedridden patients for vomitingflaskbottle that has a narrow neckfootbatha small bathtub for warming or washing or disinfecting the feetgas holder, gasometera large gas-tight spherical or cylindrical tank for holding gas to be used as fuelhogsheada large cask especially one holding 63 galshot tuba very large tub (large enough for more than one bather) filled with hot waterjoruma large drinking bowljuga large bottle with a narrow mouthkegsmall cask or barrelkibblean iron bucket used for hoisting in wells or mininglaver(Old Testament) large basin used by a priest in an ancient Jewish temple to perform ritual ablutionsloving cupa large drinking vessel (usually with two handles) that people drink out of in turn at a banquetmarmitea large pot especially one with legs used e.g. for cooking soupMason jara glass jar with an air-tight screw top; used in home canningmazera large hardwood drinking bowlmugwith handle and usually cylindricalampoule, ampul, ampule, phial, viala small bottle that contains a drug (especially a sealed sterile container for injection by needle)pickle barrela barrel holding vinegar in which cucumbers are pickledpill bottlea small bottle for holding pillspottlea pot that holds 2 quartspressure cookerautoclave for cooking at temperatures above the boiling point of waterreservoirtank used for collecting and storing a liquid (as water or oil)saucepota cooking pot that has handles on either side and tight fitting lid; used for stewing or boilingscoopa large ladleseptic tanklarge tank where solid matter or sewage is disintegrated by bacteriashooka disassembled barrel; the parts packed for storage or shipmenthip bath, sitz batha bathtub in which your buttocks and hips are immersed as if you were sitting in a chair and you bathe in a sitting positionsmelling bottlea bottle containing smelling saltssoup ladlea ladle for serving soupspecimen bottlea bottle for holding urine specimensstockpota pot used for preparing soup stockstoupan archaic drinking vesseltankarda large drinking vessel with one handleteapotpot for brewing tea; usually has a spout and handletoilet bowlthe bowl of a toilet that can be flushed with watertuna large cask especially one holding a volume equivalent to 2 butts or 252 galsurna large pot for making coffee or teavasean open jar of glass or porcelain used as an ornament or to hold flowershandbasin, lavabo, wash-hand basin, washbasin, washbowla basin for washing the hands (`wash-hand basin' is a British expression)washtuba tub in which clothes or linens can be washedwater bottlea bottle for holding waterwhiskey bottlea bottle for holding whiskeywine bottlea bottle for holding winetype of:containerany object that can be used to hold things (especially a large metal boxlike object of standardized dimensions that can be loaded from one form of transport to another)
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a tube in which a body fluid circulatessynonyms: vastypes:blood vessela vessel in which blood circulatesductus arteriosusa blood vessel in a fetus that bypasses pulmonary circulation by connecting the pulmonary artery directly to the ascending aorta; normally closes at birthvasa vasorumany small blood vessel ramifying on the outside of a major artery or veinvein, vena, venous blood vessela blood vessel that carries blood from the capillaries toward the hearttype of:
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a craft designed for water transportationsynonyms: watercraftexamples:Merrimacan ironclad vessel built by the Confederate forces in the hope of breaking the blockade imposed by the NorthMonitoran ironclad vessel built by Federal forces to do battle with the Merrimactypes:bareboata vessel (such as a yacht) that can be chartered without a captain or crew or provisionsboata small vessel for travel on waterfishing boat, fishing smack, fishing vessela vessel for fishing; often has a well to keep the catch alivegalley(classical antiquity) a crescent-shaped seagoing vessel propelled by oarsgalleya large medieval vessel with a single deck propelled by sails and oars with guns at stern and prow; a complement of 1,000 men; used mainly in the Mediterranean for war and tradingice yacht, iceboat, scootera sailing vessel with runners and a cross-shaped frame; suitable for traveling over iceshipa vessel that carries passengers or freightshrimpera vessel engaged in shrimpingweather shipan oceangoing vessel equipped to make meteorological observationsarka boat built by Noah to save his family and animals from the floodblockade-runnera ship that runs through or around a naval blockadebrigtwo-masted sailing vessel square-rigged on both mastsbrigantine, hermaphrodite brigtwo-masted sailing vessel square-rigged on the foremast and fore-and-aft rigged on the mainmastbumboata small boat that ferries supplies and commodities for sale to a larger ship at anchorcanal boat, narrow boat, narrowboata long boat that carries freight and is narrow enough to be used in canalscuttera sailing vessel with a single mast set further back than the mast of a sloopdhowa lateen-rigged sailing vessel used in the Indian Oceanfeluccaa fast narrow sailing ship of the Mediterraneanferry, ferryboata boat that transports people or vehicles across a body of water and operates on a regular schedulefireboata boat equipped to fight fires on ships or along a waterfrontflagshipthe ship that carries the commander of a fleet and flies his flagfore-and-aftersailing vessel with a fore-and-aft riggalleona large square-rigged sailing ship with three or more masts; used by the Spanish for commerce and war from the 15th to 18th centuriesgas-turbine shipa ship powered by a gas turbinegondolalong narrow flat-bottomed boat propelled by sculling; traditionally used on canals of Veniceguard boata boat that is on guard duty (as in a harbor) around a fleet of warshipsgunboata small shallow-draft boat carrying mounted guns; used by costal patrolshospital shipa ship built to serve as a hospital; used for wounded in wartimehulka ship that has been wrecked and abandonediceboat, icebreakera ship with a reinforced bow to break up ice and keep channels open for navigationIndiamana large sailing ship that was engaged in the British trade with Indiajunkany of various Chinese boats with a high poop and lugsailsketcha sailing vessel with two masts; the mizzen is forward of the rudderpostlightshipa ship equipped like a lighthouse and anchored where a permanent lighthouse would be impracticablelongboatthe largest boat carried by a merchant sailing vesselluggersmall fishing boat rigged with one or more lugsailsminelayership equipped for laying marine minesminesweepership equipped to detect and then destroy or neutralize or remove marine minesnuclear-powered shipship whose motive power comes from the energy of a nuclear reactorpassenger shipa ship built to carry passengerspilot boata boat to carry pilots to and from large shipspolice boata boat used by harbor policepuntan open flat-bottomed boat used in shallow waters and propelled by a long poleriggera sailing vessel with a specified rigriver boata boat used on rivers or to ply a riverschoonersailing vessel used in former timesscowany of various flat-bottomed boats with sloping endssea boata boat that is seaworthy; that is adapted to the open seasshipwrecka wrecked ship (or a part of one)sister shipa ship that is one of two or more similar ships built at the same timeslave shipa ship used to transport slaves from their homes to places of bondagesloopa sailing vessel with a single mast set about one third of the boat's length aft of the bowsmacka sailing ship (usually rigged like a sloop or cutter) used in fishing and sailing along the coastsmall boata boat that is smallsmall shipa ship that is smallsquare-riggera square-rigged sailing shipsteamboata boat propelled by a steam enginesurfboata boat that can be launched or landed in heavy surfthree-deckerany ship having three deckstransport shipa ship for carrying soldiers or military equipmenttreasure shipa 16th-century ship loaded with treasuretriremeancient Greek or Roman galley or warship having three tiers of oars on each sidetroopshipship for transporting troopswindjammera large sailing shipwrecka ship that has been destroyed at seacaravela small, light ship with lateen sails and two to four masts; used by Spanish and Portuguese sailors in the 15th and 16th centuriestype of:crafta vehicle designed for navigation in or on water or air or through outer space
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