kettle, ketel, kettell

[A. S. cetel, cytel; Mæso-Goth. katils, borrowed from Lat. catillus a little bowl, dim in. of catinus a bowl, akin to Gr. kotylos, kotyle =a little cup; Icel. ketill; Sw. kittel; Dan. kedel; Dut. ketel; Ger. ke el; Ru . kotel.] 1. A metallic ve el in which water or other liquid is boiled. In sugar-houses kettles are arranged in rows called batteries. *2. A kettle-drum (q. v.). A pretty kettle of fish : [KIDDLE.] kettle-boiler, s. An old form of steam-boiler whose lower portion was shaped as an inverted conical frustum, and the upper part as a dome. The form resembles that of a tea-kettle. kettle-drum, s. 1. Music : A musical instrument, so named from its resemblance to a hemispherical kettle. It is formed of thin copper, and has a head of parchment or vellum. Kettle-drums are used in pairs, slung on each side of the withers of a cavalry horse. One drum is tuned to the key-note, and the other to the fifth of the key in which the piece in which they are to be used is written. The tuning is by a hoop and screws. The best sticks for kettledrums are those having whalebone handles with a wooden button covered by a piece of sponge; by the use of these the finest gradations of tone may be gained. Kettle-drums are said to have been introduced into the orchestra by Handel, who employed a pair taken as part of the spoil at the battle of Dettingen, in the score of the Te Deum, written in celebration of that event. 2. Society: A tea party held by fashionable people in the afternoon before dinner.