noun

funnel

/ˈfʌn.əl/ · say it: FUN·ul

the staged path from awareness to purchase

In more detail

1. (noun) a cone-shaped tool with a wide opening at the top and a narrow tube at the bottom, used to pour liquids or powders into a container with a small opening

2. (noun) a smokestack or chimney on a ship

3. (verb) to move or pour something through a funnel, or to direct something through a narrow channel

Examples

1. I used a funnel to pour oil into the car engine.
2. The ship's funnels released smoke into the sky.
3. The company funnels all customer complaints to a central department.

How to use funnel

As a noun, funnel refers to either a kitchen tool or a ship's smokestack. As a verb, it means to direct something systematically through a narrow channel or toward a specific purpose, often used in contexts of organization, finance, or logistics. The verb commonly appears in business and administrative contexts.

Common phrases

funnel money into
funnel traffic through
funnel cake
narrow funnel
pour through a funnel

Synonyms

channel · direct · guide · tube · conduit

Opposites

disperse · scatter · spread

Word family

funneled · funneling · funnels

A common mistake

Learners sometimes confuse the spelling with 'funeral' or misspell it with a single 'n', and may forget that in American English the verb doubles the final consonant (funneled, funneling) rather than using 'funnelled' as in British English.

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