I. ˈfən ə l 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. ˈfu̇n ə l, ˈfən- noun
( -s )
Etymology: origin unknown
dialect England : hinny