Dictionaries › English

cistern

Pronunciation: /ˈsɪs.tən/

The English word “cistern” has 6 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. A reservoir or tank for holding water, especially for catching and holding rainwater for later use.
  2. In a flush toilet, the container in which the water used for flushing is held; a toilet tank.
  3. A shallow, typically oval, vessel made of porcelain, pottery, or glass.
  4. The receptacle that holds the fuel in an oil lamp.
  5. A cisterna.
  6. The vessel surrounding the condenser in a steam engine.

Etymology

From Middle English cisterne, from Old French cisterne (Modern French citerne) from Latin cisterna, from cista (“box”), from Ancient Greek κίστη (kístē, “box”). Doublet of cisterna.

Keep exploring: in the interactive dictionary every word of a definition is a link. Open “cistern” there

More English words

About this dictionary

The English dictionary on Glottosphere has 650,529 entries with a page. Browse the English dictionary.

Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.