crucible
Americannoun
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a container of metal or refractory material employed for heating substances to high temperatures.
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Metallurgy. a hollow area at the bottom of a furnace in which the metal collects.
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a severe, searching test or trial.
noun
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a vessel in which substances are heated to high temperatures
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the hearth at the bottom of a metallurgical furnace in which the metal collects
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a severe trial or test
noun
Usage
What does crucible mean? A crucible is a severe test or trial or an extremely challenging experience.This figurative sense of crucible is based on the literal meaning of the word: a heat-resistant container used to melt metals. Crucible in the literal sense is used in the context of metallurgy, the science of working with and refining metals. The word is perhaps best known from its use as the title of the 1953 play The Crucible by Arthur Miller.Example: Their friendship was forged in the crucible of boot camp.
Etymology
Origin of crucible
1400–50; late Middle English crusible, corusible < Medieval Latin crucibulum; compare Anglo-French crusil, Old French croi-suel, croisol night lamp, crucible < Gallo-Romance *croceolus (of uncertain origin), probably Latinized on the model of tūribulum thurible
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
There’s no crucible more scrutinized in the sport than the Olympic Games.
From Los Angeles Times
The plane seat is my crucible — and the most difficult part of every trip.
From Los Angeles Times
This weekend’s Grammys and next weekend’s Super Bowl — with a halftime performance from Puerto Rican megastar Bad Bunny — arrive at a crucible moment.
From Los Angeles Times
He took off his shoes, lined them up neatly with the rest, and stepped into the crucible of light that joined the hallway with the dining and living rooms.
From Literature
December’s feasts and fêtes are a cook’s crucible, but by January, chances are your kitchen stamina has begun to sputter out.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
