barrel
bar‧rel1 /ˈbærəl/ 
noun [countable]
1. a large curved container with a flat top and bottom, made of wood or metal, and used for storing beer, wine etc:
The wine is aged in oak barrels.
barrel of
barrels of beer
2. a unit of measurement for oil, equal to 159 litres
barrel of
two million barrels of oil
3.
the part of a gun that the bullets are fired through
4. have somebody over a barrel to put someone in a situation in which they are forced to accept or do what you want:
The manager has us over a barrel – either we work on a Saturday or we lose our jobs.
5. be a barrel of laughs [often in negatives] to be very enjoyable:
Life is not exactly a barrel of laughs at the moment.
⇨ pork barrel, ⇨ scrape (the bottom of) the barrel at scrape1(5), ⇨ lock, stock, and barrel at lock2(3)
barrel2 verb [intransitive] American English informal
to move very fast, especially in an uncontrolled way:
A vehicle barreled out of a shopping center and crashed into the side of my car.
| I |
noun [countable] Date: 1200-1300
Language: Old French
Origin: baril
Language: Old French
Origin: baril
1. a large curved container with a flat top and bottom, made of wood or metal, and used for storing beer, wine etc:
barrel of
2. a unit of measurement for oil, equal to 159 litres
barrel of
3.
the part of a gun that the bullets are fired through
4. have somebody over a barrel to put someone in a situation in which they are forced to accept or do what you want:
5. be a barrel of laughs [often in negatives] to be very enjoyable:
⇨ pork barrel, ⇨ scrape (the bottom of) the barrel at scrape1(5), ⇨ lock, stock, and barrel at lock2(3)
| II |
verb [intransitive] American English informalto move very fast, especially in an uncontrolled way: