Definition

Noun: A coffee urn is a large, often metal, container with a tap, used for brewing, storing, and keeping coffee hot, typically for serving a large number of people.

Usage

A coffee urn is used in settings where coffee needs to be served continuously and kept at a drinkable temperature for an extended period. It is common in offices, events, cafeterias, and communal spaces.

Examples

• The conference organizer set up a coffee urn in the lobby for the attendees.
• Please refill the coffee urn; it's almost empty.
• The old silver coffee urn was a staple at the church social.

Advanced Usage

• "To man the coffee urn": To be responsible for serving coffee from or maintaining the coffee urn.
  • Volunteers are needed to man the coffee urn during the breakfast shift.
• The term can be used metonymically to represent the provision of coffee or a casual gathering point.
  • Most of the interesting conversations happened around the coffee urn.

Variants and Related Words

• Urn: A general term for a vase with a foot and usually a rounded body, or a large metal container with a tap used for serving a hot beverage.
• Samovar: A Russian urn used to boil water for tea, structurally similar but for a different beverage.
• Percolator: A type of coffeepot that brews coffee by cycling boiling water through coffee grounds. A coffee urn may use a percolation system.

Synonyms

• Coffee dispenser
• Hot beverage urn (more general)
• Coffee server

Antonyms

• Coffee cup (a single serving vessel)
• French press (a small-batch brewing device)
• Single-serve coffee maker

Related Phrases

• Coffee station: An area where coffee, a coffee urn, cups, and condiments are set up for self-service.
  • Help yourself at the coffee station in the corner.
• To tap the urn: To draw coffee from the urn's spigot.
  • He tapped the urn and filled his mug.

Noun

1. an urn in which coffee is made and kept hot