colander

[kuhl-uh n-der, kol-] /ˈkʌl ən dər, ˈkɒl-/

noun

a metal or plastic container with a perforated bottom, for draining and straining foods.

Origin

1400-50; late Middle English colyndore, perhaps (with nasalization) < Old Provençal colador < Medieval Latin cōlātōrium, equivalent to Latin cōlā(re) to strain (verbal derivative of cōlum strainer) + -tōrium -tory²

Can be confused

calendar, calender, colander.

Examples from the web for colander

Drain cooked greens in a large strainer or colander.
Drain beans in a colander and run cold water through them.
Clean oysters by placing in a colander and pouring over them three-fourths cup cold water.
Cook macaroni in boiling salted water until soft, drain in a colander, and pour over macaroni two cups cold water.
Turn in a cheese cloth place over a colander, drain, and wring in cheese-cloth.
colander into which to pour your curds and whey for draining.
Set coconuts, eyes down, in a colander set into sink to drain water.
Ladle curds out of the pot into a large colander, lined with a double thickness of cheesecloth and set over a clean bucket.
Granted, it isn't really a boat in the political cartoon, it's a colander.
The raging sea below, symbolizing the euro crisis, can definitely not be handled in a colander.

British Dictionary definitions for colander

colander

/ˈkɒləndə; ˈkʌl-/

noun

a pan with a perforated bottom for straining or rinsing foods

Word Origin

C14 colyndore, probably from Old Provençal colador, via Medieval Latin, from Late Latin cōlāre to filter, from Latin cōlum sieve

Word Origin and History for colander

mid-14c., coloundour, probably altered from Medieval Latin colatorium "strainer" (with parasitic -n-) from Latin colatus, past participle of colare "to strain," from colum "sieve, strainer, wicker fishing net," of uncertain origin. Cognate with French couloir, Spanish colador, Italian colatojo.