scuttlebutt
Originally, a cask with a hole cut into its top, used to provide drinking water on…Originally (now chiefly historical), a cask with a hole cut into its top, used to provide drinking water on board a ship; now (by extension, informal), a drinking fountain on a modern ship.
» The scuttlebutt is that layoffs are coming.
AlanF_US · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
2 senses(countable)Originally (now chiefly historical), a cask with a hole cut into its top, used to provide drinking water on board a ship; now (by extension, informal), a drinking fountain on a modern ship.
лагу́нlagún
(slang, uncountable)Gossip, idle chatter; also, rumour.
слу́хиslúxi, спле́тниsplétni
плі́ткаplítka
- a report (often malicious) about the behavior of other people
Examples
2 sentencesThe scuttlebutt is that layoffs are coming.
The scuttlebutt is they're going to Australia.
Translations
3 languagesBy meaning 2
Origin
The noun is derived from scuttle (“to cut a hole through (something)”) + butt (“wooden casThe noun is derived from scuttle (“to cut a hole through (something)”) + butt (“wooden cask”). Noun sense 2 (“gossip, idle chatter; rumour”) refers to the fact that sailors would gather around the scuttlebutt to drink and exchange gossip; compare furphy and water cooler.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: scuttlebuttsSynonyms
39 synonymsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable