释义 |
fun·nel I. \ˈfənəl\ noun (-s) Usage: often attributive Etymology: Middle English fonel, funel, from Old Provençal fonilh, from Medieval Latin fundibulum, short for Latin infundibulum, from infundere to pour in, from in + fundere to pour — more at in, found 1. a. : a utensil that has typically the shape of a hollow cone with a tube extending from the point, is designed to catch and direct a downward flow of liquid or some other substance, and is sometimes fitted or combined with a strainer or filter — see separatory funnel b. : something shaped like a funnel (as a conical part, passage, or hole); specifically : the swimming funnel of a cephalopod c. : one that serves as a constricted channel or central agent or organization through which something passes or is transmitted 2. : a stack or flue for the escape of smoke or for ventilation; specifically : the stack of a ship 3. : a cylindrical band of metal; especially : one around the top of an upper mast around which the rigging fits 4. : running gate 5. : funnel cloud 6. : a black usually cylindrical metal hood attached to a spotlight to prevent the spill of light outside the illuminated area of a stage II. verb (funneled also funnelled ; funneled also funnelled ; funneling also funnelling ; funnels) intransitive verb 1. : to have or take the shape of a funnel : narrow, widen < a shallow, rounded valley bottom funnels into a miniature gorge with steep bluffs — Journal of Geology > 2. : to move to or from a focal point or into a central channel < the gang … funneled onto the end of the jetty off the slope — R.O.Bowen > < orders were funneling out to the ships from the flagship — Alexander Griffin > 3. : to pass through or as if through a funnel; specifically : to move through a constricted passage or central medium < the fierce winds which funneled up the valley center — John Steinbeck > < through the great port funnels much of the overseas commerce — Newsweek > < thousands of pictures … funneled back to the press and public through the public-relations division — Robert Moora > transitive verb 1. : to cause to funnel: a. : to form into the shape of a funnel < funnels his hands and shouts through them > b. : to cause to move to or from a focal point or into a central channel < traffic is funneled into consolidation stations … and fanned out to destinations — Distribution Age > < airlift's traffic pattern funnels planes from widely separated … bases into two 20-mile-wide corridors — National Geographic > c. : to direct to a single recipient or distribute from a single source < impurities funneled into the air by automobiles, backyard bonfires, and factory chimneys — New York Times > < funnel the kerosine into the tank > d. : to send or direct through a narrow passage or central medium < pass … through which were funneled troops and supplies — F.T.Chapman > < cupped her hands over the lens of the flashlight, funneling the light through a small opening — E.S.Gardner > < if a bank funnels its news through a public-relations firm — Banking > 2. : to serve as a means for the transmission or direction of < accused the press of funneling secret military information to Soviet Russia — Newsweek > < funnel … high-caliber young people to the agency business — Printer's Ink > III. \ˈfu̇nəl, ˈfən-\ noun (-s) Etymology: origin unknown dialect England : hinny |