Meanings
nounladle (plural ladles)
plural ladles
- A deep-bowled spoonlike utensil with a long, usually curved, handle.
When the materials of glass have been kept long in fusion, the mixture casts up the superfluous salt, which the workmen afterwards take off with ladles.
1680, Robert Boyle, Experiments and Notes about the Producibleness of Chemical PrinciplesSynonyms: dipper
- engineeringA container used in a foundry or steel mill to transport and pour out molten metal.
- The float or paddle on a mill wheel.
Synonyms: ladle board
- An instrument for drawing the charge of a cannon.
The great guns ranged along the deck — each bound fast by its new breechings — with their linstocks and sponges and ladles and rammers, made no idle show of warlike strength.
1923, Charles Boardman Hawes, The Dark Frigate, Chapter 6
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA deep-bowled spoonlike utensil with a long, usually curved, handle.
Similar
nounThe float or paddle on a mill wheel.
Similar
More synonyms by meaning
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*kleh₂-“to put, lay out”
- Proto-Germanic*hlaþaną“to load”
- Old Englishhlædel
- Middle Englishladel
- Englishladle
From Middle English ladel, from Old English hlædel, derived from Proto-Germanic *hlaþaną (“to load”), from Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂- (“to put, lay out”), same source as Lithuanian kloti (“to spread”), equivalent to lade + -le (“agent suffix”).
More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-Germanic
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek κύαθος, ἀρυτήρ
- κύαθος (kúathos)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- ἀρυτήρ (arutḗr)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Arabic مِغْرَفَة
- مِغْرَفَة (miḡrafa)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Bengali হাতা
- হাতা (hata)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Bulgarian черпа́к, пота
- черпа́к (čerpák)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- пота (pota)container used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
- греба (greba)serve with a ladle
- загребвам (zagrebvam)serve with a ladle
Catalan cullerot, culler
- cullerotdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- cullerdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Chinese Cantonese 湯殼 /汤壳, 炒殼 /炒壳
- 湯殼 /汤壳 (tong¹ hok³)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- 炒殼 /炒壳 (caau² hok³)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- 𢳂 /𫼣 (bat¹)serve with a ladle
Chinese Mandarin 杓子, 瓢
- 杓子 (sháozi)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- 瓢 (piáo)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- 盛 (chéng)serve with a ladle
Czech naběračka
- naběračkadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Danish øse, støbeske
- øsedeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- støbeskecontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
Dutch pollepel, opscheplepel
- pollepeldeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- opscheplepeldeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- juslepeldeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- opscheppenserve with a ladle
- inscheppenserve with a ladle
- opdienenserve with a ladle
Estonian kulp
- kulpdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Finnish kauha, senkka
- kauhadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- senkkacontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
- valusankocontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
- kauhoaserve with a ladle
French louche f cuillère à pot, poche
- louche f cuillère à potdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- pochedeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- pochondeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- pochecontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
German Kelle, Suppenkelle
- Kelledeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- Suppenkelledeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- Schöpfkelledeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- Schöpflöffeldeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- Gießpfannecontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
Greek κουτάλα
- κουτάλα (koutála)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Hawaiian kīʻapu
- kīʻapudeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Hebrew מַצֶּקֶת
- מַצֶּקֶת (matséket)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Hindi कलछी, करछा
- कलछी (kalchī)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- करछा (karchā)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- डोई (ḍoī)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Hungarian merőkanál
- merőkanáldeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Icelandic ausa, ausa
- ausadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- ausaserve with a ladle
Irish ladar
- ladardeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Italian mestolo, ramaiolo
- mestolodeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- ramaiolodeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- sivieracontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
Japanese お玉杓子, お玉
- お玉杓子 (otamajakushi)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- お玉 (otama)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Korean 국자
- 국자 (gukja)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Latin trua, trulla
- truadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- trulladeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Latvian pavārnīca
- pavārnīcadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Lithuanian samtis
- samtisdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Malay senduk
- sendukdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Māori kapu, kōtutu
- kapudeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- kōtutudeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- kōtutuserve with a ladle
- tīkokoserve with a ladle
Norwegian Bokmål ause, øse
- ausedeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- øsedeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Persian مَلاقِه, کَفچِه
- مَلاقِه (malâqe)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- کَفچِه (kafče)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- چَمچِه (čamče)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Polish apałonik, chochla
- apałonikdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- chochladeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- kopyśćdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- łyżka wazowadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- warząchewdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- warzęchadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- kadźcontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
Portuguese concha
- conchadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Punjabi ڈوئی
- ڈوئی (ḍo'ī)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Romanian polonic
- polonicdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Russian поло́вник, черпа́к
- поло́вник (polóvnik)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- черпа́к (čerpák)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- ковш (kovš)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- поварёшка (povarjóška)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- черпать (čerpatʹ)serve with a ladle
- зачерпывать (začerpyvatʹ)serve with a ladle
Scottish Gaelic ladar
- ladardeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Slovak naberačka
- naberačkadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Spanish cucharón, cazo
- cucharóndeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- cazodeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- hatacadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- venenciadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- avenenciadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- huishlladeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- cazocontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
- verterserve with a ladle
Swedish slev, skopa
- slevdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- skopadeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- skänkcontainer used in a foundry to transport and pour out molten metal
Tagalog sandok, kutsaron
- sandokdeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- kutsarondeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Tamil கரண்டி
- கரண்டி (karaṇṭi)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Thai ทัพพี
- ทัพพี (táp-pii)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Turkish kepçe
- kepçedeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Ukrainian черпа́к, ополо́ник
- черпа́к (čerpák)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- ополо́ник (opolónyk)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- ківш (kivš)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Urdu کَرْچھا, ڈوئی
- کَرْچھا (karchā)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- ڈوئی (ḍoī)deep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Vietnamese môi, giá
- môideep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- giádeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- muôideep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
- vádeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Welsh lletwad
- lletwaddeep-bowled spoon with a long, usually curved, handle
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with ladle
All rhymes →Anagrams
Cite this entry
APA
ladle. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ladle
MLA
“ladle.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ladle. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ladle,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ladle.
Source: ladle on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.