tinful

/ˈtin How to pronounce tin (audio)/ (ame, mw)

tinful — noun

1. the amount of food or liquid that fills a small metal container of the kind used

1.名詞B1
釋義

the amount of food or liquid that fills a small metal container of the kind used for storing and selling preserved foods like beans, fish, or soups

例句

Haruto opened a tinful of sardines and spread them on toast for a quick lunch.

a tinful of + [food] for quantity from an opened tin

The recipe asked for one tinful of coconut milk, not fresh coconut cream.

one tinful of + [liquid ingredient] in a recipe

同義詞
  • canful

    American English equivalent; same meaning

  • tin

    informally used alone: 'a tin of beans' vs 'a tinful of beans' — 'tin' names the container, 'tinful' emphasises the amount

文法句型

a tinful of + [food/liquid/substance]

two tinfuls of + [noun]

用法筆記

Frequently followed by 'of' to specify the contents. British English uses 'tin' where American English uses 'can', so 'tinful' corresponds to American 'canful'. The plural is 'tinfuls' (not 'tinsful').

常見錯誤

❌I drank a tinful of water from the bottle.
✅I drank a glass of water from the bottle.
💡'tinful' only refers to the contents of a metal food can, not a drinking vessel.
❌We bought two tinsful of paint.
✅We bought two tinfuls of paint.
💡the plural of the compound is 'tinfuls', not 'tinsful'.

2. a quantity of something roughly equal to the volume of a standard tin or can, us

2.名詞B2
釋義

a quantity of something roughly equal to the volume of a standard tin or can, used as an informal unit of measurement without reference to a specific container

例句

The gardener mixed a tinful of fertiliser with water for the rose bushes.

a tinful of + non-food substance as informal measure

Sofia added a tinful of sugar to the simmering fruit and stirred slowly.

同義詞
  • canful

    American equivalent

  • cupful

    different standard volume, but same informal-measurement function

文法句型

a tinful of + [substance]

tinful by tinful

用法筆記

In this sense the tinful does not refer to an actual container being opened; rather it uses a standard tin as a mental unit of volume. Distinguish from sense 1 (AMOUNT IN A TIN), where a real tin is being opened or emptied.

常見錯誤

❌He drank a tinful of juice from the carton.
✅He poured a tinful of juice from the carton into a cup.
💡'tinful' implies the amount a tin would hold, not the act of drinking from one.