n. & v.
--n.
1. a large long-handled spoon with a cup-shaped bowl used for serving esp. soups and gravy.
2 a vessel for transporting molten metal in a foundry.
--v.tr. (often foll. by out) transfer (liquid) from one receptacle to another.
Phrases and idioms:
ladle out distribute, esp. lavishly.
Derivatives:
ladleful n. (pl. -fuls). ladler n.
Etymology: OE hl{aelig}del f. hladan LADE