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Glite Dictionary
🍰 A cake 🟤 A dried stain
coffee ring

coffee ring

6.4
A ring-shaped mark that appears at the edge of a liquid drop as it dries
  • noun
  • /ˈkɔːfi rɪŋ/
  • Specialized
translation icon : anillo de café
  • The textbook explains how particle flow causes a coffee ring instead of an even deposit.

Examples

  • Researchers observed a coffee ring forming on the glass as the droplet dried.

  • A stubborn coffee ring around the mug showed where the spill had evaporated overnight.

  • Look at this coffee ring!

  • I noticed a coffee ring on the table.

  • Researchers observed a coffee ring forming on the glass as the droplet dried.

  • A stubborn coffee ring around the mug showed where the spill had evaporated overnight.

  • The textbook explains how particle flow causes a coffee ring instead of an even deposit.

Synonyms

ring
vscoffee ring
501 2.8

A round shape or area that goes around something

is the specific deposit formed by particles moving outward during evaporation
ring of color
vscoffee ring
6.4

A small circular area of color on the skin around a bite or wound

focuses on how deposits form by particle movement during drying

Surface Forms

coffee ring singular
coffee rings plural

Morphology

coffee + ring

The phrase denotes a literal ring-shaped deposit made by coffee, so its meaning is directly derivable from combining 'coffee' (the beverage) and 'ring' (a circular mark or formation). This is a simple, compositional description that a B1 learner who knows both words can readily infer without prior exposure.

Etymology

Coffee ring comes from the dark ring left when a drop of coffee or other drink dries on a cup or table; tiny bits in the liquid move to the edge and make a ring, so it means 'a ring-shaped stain or deposit'.