cooler

noun

cool·​er ˈkü-lər 

1

: one that cools: such as

a

: a container for cooling liquids

b

: refrigerator

2

: lockup, jail

especially : a cell for violent or unmanageable prisoners

3

: an iced drink usually with an alcoholic beverage as a base

Synonyms

• bastille
• big house [slang]
• bridewell
• brig
• calaboose
• can
• clink [slang]
• coop
• guardroom
• hock
• hold
• hoosegow
• jail
• jailhouse
• joint [slang]
• jug
• lockup
• nick [British slang]
• pen
• penitentiary
• pokey [slang]
• prison
• quod [British slang]
• slam
• slammer
• stir [slang]
• stockade
• tolbooth [Scottish]

Examples of cooler in a Sentence

The sodas are in the cooler.

plea-bargained to avoid spending time in the cooler

Recent Examples on the Web

Related Articles Igloo recalls 1 million rolling coolers after fingertip amputation injuries In Oregon, two cats in separate households also tested positive for the virus in February after eating a raw cat food made by Wild Coast LLC based in Olympia, Washington. —Samantha Gowen, Orange County Register, 20 Mar. 2025

The only violation had legs, a tail and left 16 pieces of rodent poop near the front counter, under dry storage shelves and the reach-in cooler. —David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 20 Mar. 2025

Zoom in: Ideal Market on Clearview Parkway has a cooler by the registers with the mango and peach versions. —Carlie Kollath Wells, Axios, 18 Mar. 2025

Suddenly there’s no office, no water cooler and no work family to remind you to eat lunch. —Joy Stevens, Forbes, 13 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

cool entry 2 + -er entry 2

First Known Use

circa 1550, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing cooler

• cooler heads prevail
• the cooler
• wine cooler

Rhymes for cooler

• jeweller
• ruler
• schooler
• schuller
• preschooler
• vestibular

Kids Definition

cooler

noun

cool·​er ˈkü-lər 

: a container for keeping food or drink cool