to bring to a boil
21
2.6
- phrasal verb
- /brɪŋ tə ə bɔɪl/
:
hacer hervir
- Put the water in a pan and bring it to a boil.
Examples
-
Add 2 cups of water, cover, and bring to a boil.
Academic text (1992) -
You need to bring the mixture to a boil for it to thicken properly.
-
Add the stock, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil.
Blog text (5) -
Cook for a few minutes before adding the chicken stock and bringing the pot to a boil.
Blog text (12) -
Add the milk to the pan and bring it to a boil.
Academic text (1993) -
Stir all the ingredients together and bring it to a boil.
Blog text (17) -
Cover with cold water, bring to a boil, and simmer, covered, for 5 minutes.
Academic text (1992) -
Return the saucepan to the heat and bring to a boil on high.
Blog text (27) -
Fill a medium saucepan with water and bring it to a boil.
Blog text (9) -
Combine in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
Blog text (21)
Synonyms
269
1.0
To heat a liquid until it bubbles and becomes gas
6
7.0
To cause someone to feel very angry
Antonyms
How Hot
Surface Forms
Morphology
The core meaning 'to heat a liquid until it begins to boil' is directly compositional from 'bring' (put into a state) + 'boil' (to reach boiling), with the function words 'to a' marking the target state. This state-change composition is cross-linguistically common and even the metaphorical extension ('cause a situation to reach an intense point') follows the same transparent logic, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will likely infer the meaning.
Etymology
The phrase bring to a boil comes from cooking: you bring a pot of water to a boil when it starts to bubble strongly. That strong image of something bubbling and nearly overflowing helps explain why we also use it to say a problem 'has reached a critical or intense point'.