potter
To act in a vague or unmotivated wayTo act in a vague or unmotivated way; to fuss about with unimportant things.
» Tom isn't a potter.
Tom ist kein Töpfer. — wolfgangth
Том не гончар. — Wezel
Том не гончар. — deniko
CK · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
3 senses(UK)To act in a vague or unmotivated way; to fuss about with unimportant things.
(UK)To move slowly or aimlessly. (Often potter about, potter around.)
move around aimlessly
(obsolete)To poke repeatedly.
Examples
61 sentencesTom isn't a potter.
Том не гончар. — deniko
ruТом не гончар. — Wezel
deTom ist kein Töpfer. — wolfgangth
Tom is a potter.
Том — гончар. — deniko
ruТом гончар. — User55521
deTom ist Töpfer. — wolfgangth
What's your favorite Harry Potter book?
Яка твоя улюблена книжка про Гаррі Поттера? — deniko
ruКакая твоя любимая книга про Гарри Поттера? — dipdowel
deWelches Harry-Potter-Buch findest du am besten? — Pfirsichbaeumchen
I know Tom is a potter.
I know that Tom is a potter.
Origin
Frequentative of pote, equivalent to pote + -er. Cognate with Dutch poteren, peuteren (“toFrequentative of pote, equivalent to pote + -er. Cognate with Dutch poteren, peuteren (“to poke, pry, search”).
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
potters, pottering, pottered, potteredPhrasal verbs
2 phrasal verbsSynonyms
9 synonyms- work lightly:putter
- move around aimlessly:putterpotter aroundputter around
- do random, unplanned work or activities or spend time idly:puttermess aroundtinkermonkeymonkey aroundmuck aboutmuck around
Word family
4 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle