funnel

noun

/ˈfʌnl/

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a device that is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, used for pouring liquids or powders into a small openingTopics Scientific researchc2
(also smokestack)
a metal chimney, for example on a ship or an engine, through which smoke comes outTopics Transport by waterc2

Word Originlate Middle English: apparently via Old French from Provençal fonilh, from late Latin fundibulum, from Latin infundibulum, from infundere, from in- ‘into’ + fundere ‘pour’.

funnel

verb

/ˈfʌnl/

[intransitive, transitive]

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they funnel	/ˈfʌnl/ /ˈfʌnl/
he / she / it funnels	/ˈfʌnlz/ /ˈfʌnlz/
past simple funnelled	/ˈfʌnld/ /ˈfʌnld/
past participle funnelled	/ˈfʌnld/ /ˈfʌnld/
(US English) past simple funneled	/ˈfʌnld/ /ˈfʌnld/
(US English) past participle funneled	/ˈfʌnld/ /ˈfʌnld/
-ing form funnelling	/ˈfʌnlɪŋ/ /ˈfʌnlɪŋ/
(US English) -ing form funneling	/ˈfʌnlɪŋ/ /ˈfʌnlɪŋ/

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to move or make something move through a narrow space, or as if through a funnel
- (+ adv./prep.) Wind was funnelling through the gorge.
- funnel something (+ adv./prep.) Huge pipes funnel the water down the mountainside.
- Barricades funnelled the crowds towards the square.
- (figurative) Some $10 million in aid was funnelled into the country through government agencies.
Word Originlate Middle English: apparently via Old French from Provençal fonilh, from late Latin fundibulum, from Latin infundibulum, from infundere, from in- ‘into’ + fundere ‘pour’.