potter
English meaning: Potter
Definition
One who makes pots and other ceramic wares.
Example
“The potter shaped the wet clay on the spinning wheel.”
Another example: “On Sundays he likes to potter about in the shed, fixing odds and ends.”
Usage — When, Where & How
Noun for a craftsperson who makes ceramic vessels; also a verb (chiefly UK) meaning to busy oneself unhurriedly ('potter about the garden'), for which US English uses 'putter'. As a proper name it evokes the Harry Potter and Beatrix Potter associations.
Etymology & Origin
English — Origin & History
From Old English pott 'pot' plus the agent suffix -er; the 'busy oneself idly' verb sense derives from a frequentative of 'put', dating to the 16th century.
Synonyms
- tinker
- putter
- putter around
- monkey around
- mess around
- ceramist
- ceramicist
- potter around
- muck around
- monkey
Related Words
Common Collocations
- village potter
- potter's wheel
- potter about
- skilled potter
- potter around
- master potter
Word Forms
potter (n); potters; potter/pottered/pottering (v)
Word Tools
Literary Heritage
“To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.”
/To thine own self be true/
“Be honest with yourself — and as naturally as night follows day, you will be unable to be false to others.”
“I'm nobody! Who are you? Are you nobody, too?”
/I'm nobody! Who are you?/
“I am nobody — and that quiet anonymity is more honest than the noise of public fame.”
Images
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Language information
- Language
- English
- English
- Script
- Latin
- Family
- Indo-European
- Speakers
- 1.5B