Definition

1. Noun:

   • The act or state of boiling: The point at which a liquid bubbles and turns to vapor.
   • A painful, inflamed swelling on the skin: A localized infection, typically with pus.

2. Verb:

   • To reach or cause to reach the temperature where a liquid bubbles and turns to vapor.
   • To cook something in boiling water.
   • To be in a state of intense agitation or anger (figurative).

Usage and Examples

• Noun:

  • Wait for the boil before adding the pasta. (The state of the water bubbling vigorously.)
  • The doctor lanced the painful boil on his neck. (A skin infection.)

• Verb:

  • Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius at sea level. (Reaches its vaporization point.)
  • Please boil the eggs for six minutes. (Cook in bubbling water.)
  • He was boiling with rage after the argument. (Was extremely angry.)

Advanced Usage

• To make one's blood boil: To cause someone to become extremely angry.

  • The injustice of the situation made her blood boil.

• To keep the pot boiling: To maintain an activity or provide enough money to live on.

  • He took on freelance work to keep the pot boiling.

Variants and Related Words

• Boiler (n): A device for heating water.
• Boiling (adj/adv): Extremely hot; very angry. (e.g., , )
• Boiled (adj): Cooked in boiling water. (e.g., )

Synonyms

• Simmer (v): To boil gently.
• Seethe (v): To boil; to be filled with intense but unexpressed anger.
• Furuncle (n): Medical term for a boil.

Phrasal Verbs

• Boil down to (something): To reduce in quantity by boiling; to summarize or be the main reason.

  • The sauce needs to boil down to half its volume.
  • His argument boils down to a lack of trust.

• Boil over: To overflow while boiling; for a situation to become uncontrollable, especially anger.

  • The milk boiled over onto the stove.
  • Their disagreement finally boiled over into a shouting match.

• Boil away: To vaporize completely through boiling.

  • If you don't cover it, all the water will boil away.

Idioms

• A watched pot never boils: Time seems to pass very slowly when you are waiting for something to happen.
• To boil the ocean: To attempt an impossible or enormously ambitious task.

Noun

1. the temperature at which a liquid boils at sea level
   • they brought the water to a boil
2. a painful sore with a hard core filled with pus

Verb

1. be in an agitated emotional state
   • The customer was seething with anger
2. be agitated
   • the sea was churning in the storm
3. bring to, or maintain at, the boiling point
   • boil this liquid until it evaporates
4. immerse or be immersed in a boiling liquid, often for cooking purposes
   • boil potatoes
   • boil wool
5. come to the boiling point and change from a liquid to vapor
   • Water boils at 100 degrees Celsius