frying-pan
Definition
Noun: A "frying-pan" is a flat, long-handled metal pan used for frying food, typically in oil or fat over heat.
Usage Examples
- (A utensil used for cooking by frying.)
- (A pan designed for frying with a special coating.)
Advanced Usage
- "out of the frying-pan into the fire": a proverb meaning to move from a bad situation to a worse one.
- He left his stressful job only to start a more demanding one — out of the frying-pan into the fire. (He escaped one difficulty but encountered a greater one.)
Variants and Related Words
- Frying-pan (n): This is the standard spelling, sometimes written as "frying pan" (two words) or "frypan" (one word, less common).
- A cast-iron frying-pan is excellent for searing meat. (A specific type of cooking pan.)
Synonyms
- Skillet: a type of frying-pan, often with sloping sides.
- She used a skillet to make the stir-fry. (A frying-pan with sloping sides.)
- Griddle: a flat, smooth surface for cooking, often without sides, similar to a frying-pan.
- Pancakes are cooked on a griddle. (A flat cooking surface.)
Related Idioms
- "out of the frying-pan into the fire": as described above.
- "frying-pan to the fire": an alternative phrasing of the same proverb.
- After quitting his job, he took a loan he couldn't repay — from the frying-pan to the fire. (From a bad situation to a worse one.)
Phrasal Verbs
- Fry up: to cook something in a frying-pan quickly.
- I'll fry up some bacon for breakfast. (Cook bacon in a frying-pan.)
- Pan-fry: to fry food in a small amount of oil in a frying-pan.
- Pan-fry the fish until golden brown. (Cook the fish in a frying-pan with oil.)