boil

verb

/bɔɪl/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they boil	/bɔɪl/ /bɔɪl/
he / she / it boils	/bɔɪlz/ /bɔɪlz/
past simple boiled	/bɔɪld/ /bɔɪld/
past participle boiled	/bɔɪld/ /bɔɪld/
-ing form boiling	/ˈbɔɪlɪŋ/ /ˈbɔɪlɪŋ/

Idioms Phrasal Verbs

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[intransitive, transitive] when a liquid boils or when you boil it, it is heated to the point where it forms bubbles and turns to steam or vapour
- The water was bubbling and boiling away.
- boil something Boil plenty of salted water, then add the spaghetti.
Extra Examples
- Boil the water for five minutes to sterilize it.
- Water boils at 100°C.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- furiously
- rapidly
- vigorously
- …
verb + boil
- put something on to
See full entry
[intransitive, transitive] when a kettle, pan, etc. boils or when you boil a kettle, etc., it is heated until the water inside it boils
- (British English) The kettle's boiling.
- boil something I'll boil the kettle and make some tea.
- Cover the pot and let it boil gently for 25 minutes.
- + adj. She left the gas on by mistake and the pan boiled dry (= the water boiled until there was none left).
Extra Examples
- I'll put the kettle on to boil.
- The kettle's boiled. Do you want some tea?
- Boil a large pan of salted water.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- furiously
- rapidly
- vigorously
- …
verb + boil
- put something on to
See full entry
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[intransitive, transitive] to cook or wash something in boiling water; to be cooked or washed in boiling water
- She put some potatoes on to boil.
- boil something boiled carrots/cabbage/potatoes
- to boil an egg for somebody
- boil somebody something to boil somebody an egg
Collocations Cooking
CookingPreparing
- prepare a dish/a meal/a menu/dinner/the fish
- weigh out 100g/4oz of sugar/the ingredients
- wash/rinse the lettuce/spinach/watercress
- chop/slice/dice the carrots/onions/potatoes
- peel the carrots/onion/potatoes/garlic/orange
- grate a carrot/the cheese/some nutmeg
- remove/discard the bones/seeds/skin
- blend/combine/mix (together) the flour and water/all the ingredients
- beat/whisk the cream/eggs/egg whites
- knead/shape/roll (out) the dough
Cooking
- heat the oil in a frying pan
- preheat/heat the oven/(British English) the grill/(North American English) the broiler
- bring to (British English) the boil/(North American English) a boil
- stir constantly/gently with a wooden spoon
- reduce the heat
- simmer gently for 20 minutes/until reduced by half
- melt the butter/chocolate/cheese/sugar
- brown the meat for 8–20 minutes
- drain the pasta/the water from the pot/in a colander
- mash the potatoes/banana/avocado
Ways of cooking
- cook food/fish/meat/rice/pasta/a Persian dish
- bake (a loaf of) bread/a cake/(especially North American English) cookies/(British English) biscuits/a pie/potatoes/fish/scones/muffins
- boil cabbage/potatoes/an egg/water
- fry/deep-fry/stir-fry the chicken/vegetables
- grill meat/steak/chicken/sausages/a hot dog
- roast potatoes/peppers/meat/chicken/lamb
- sauté garlic/mushrooms/onions/potatoes/vegetables
- steam rice/vegetables/spinach/asparagus/dumplings
- toast bread/nuts
- microwave food/popcorn/(British English) a ready meal
Serving
- serve in a glass/on a bed of rice/with potatoes
- arrange the slices on a plate/in a layer
- carve the meat/lamb/chicken/turkey
- dress/toss a salad
- dress with/drizzle with olive oil/vinaigrette
- top with a slice of lemon/a scoop of ice cream/whipped cream/syrup
- garnish with a sprig of parsley/fresh basil leaves/lemon wedges/a slice of lime/a twist of orange
- sprinkle with salt/sugar/herbs/parsley/freshly ground black pepper
Extra Examples
- She can scarcely boil an egg.
- Boil the beans rapidly for ten minutes.
Topics Cooking and eatinga2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adverb
- furiously
- rapidly
- vigorously
- …
verb + boil
- put something on to
See full entry
[intransitive] boil (with something) if you boil with anger, etc. or anger, etc. boils inside you, you are very angry
- He was boiling with rage.
- She wanted to give vent to the fury boiling within her.
Topics Feelingsc2

Word Originverb Middle English: from Old French boillir, from Latin bullire ‘to bubble’, from bulla ‘bubble’.

Idioms

boil the ocean (informal, business)

to attempt to do something very difficult or impossible
- Don't try to boil the ocean by supporting every device imaginable.

make somebody’s blood boil

to make somebody extremely angry
- The way he treats his employees really makes my blood boil.
Topics Feelingsc2

a watched pot never boils

(saying) used to say that when you are impatient for something to happen, time seems to pass very slowly

boil

noun

/bɔɪl/

Idioms

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[singular] a period of boiling; the point at which liquid boils
- (British English) Bring the soup to the boil, then allow it to simmer for five minutes.
- (North American English) Bring the soup to a boil.
- The sauce should thicken as it comes to the boil.
Extra Examples
- Just before the milk comes to the boil, turn down the heat.
- When it comes to a boil, reduce the heat.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- rolling
verb + boil
- bring something to
- come to
- go off
- …
See full entry
[countable] a painful swelling (= an area that is larger and rounder than normal) under the skin which is full of a thick yellow liquid (called pus)
- The doctor lanced the boil.
- The boil on his back was painful.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verb + boil
- lance
See full entry

Word Originnoun sense 1 Middle English: from Old French boillir, from Latin bullire ‘to bubble’, from bulla ‘bubble’. noun sense 2 Old English bȳle, bȳl, of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch buil and German Beule.

Idioms

off the boil

(British English) less good than before
- The second series of the show really went off the boil.
- He played brilliantly for the first set but then went rather off the boil.

on the boil

very active
- We have several projects all on the boil at once.