Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
At 86, she’s got a potter’s wheel calling her name and a garden that needs tending.—David Hudnall, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2025 For extra special rooms, two of the Signature Suites—The Somerset and The Waterloo Bridge—have also been restyled with a fresh look and the addition of interesting objets by American potter and interior decorator Jonathan Adler.—Angelina Villa-Clarke, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025
Verb
One rainy afternoon, the kindly octogenarian — wrapped in a warm leopard print jumper — stops pottering around and sinks into her favorite chair to call her daughter.—David Opie, IndieWire, 3 Apr. 2025 This was a frequent chorus from my siblings and me as children, as our grandmother pottered about the kitchen chewing on a stick that looked a bit like sugarcane, fixing a drink brewed with honey and lemon.—Ranyechi Udemezue, Vogue, 16 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for potter
Word History
Etymology
Verb
probably frequentative of English dialect pote to poke
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above
Share