bucket / old banger
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bucket / tub
A large, open container, often with handles, used for transporting liquids or solid materials; a bucket or tub.
Stell bitte einen Kübel unter die undichte Stelle an der Decke.
Please put a bucket under the leak in the ceiling.
The context reveals whether the container or the car is meant. Words like 'Wasser' (water), 'Pflanzen' (plants), or 'Müll' (trash) point to the container. Words like 'fahren' (to drive), 'alt' (old), 'Rost' (rust), or 'Motor' (engine) point to the car.
Wirf den Abfall bitte in den Kübel da drüben.
Please throw the trash into the bucket over there.
The idiom 'es schüttet wie aus Kübeln' or 'es gießt wie aus Kübeln' means that it is raining very heavily. It uses the image of an overturned bucket of water.
Nimm einen Schirm mit, es schüttet draußen wie aus Kübeln!
Take an umbrella with you; it's pouring outside!
'Kübel' (bucket/tub) is often part of compound words that describe its function more precisely, for example 'der Müllkübel' (trash bin), 'der Blumenkübel' (flower tub/planter), or 'der Pflanzkübel' (plant tub/planter).
Im Frühling bepflanze ich immer die Blumenkübel auf dem Balkon.
In spring, I always plant flowers in the planters on the balcony.
Using 'Kübel' (old banger) for a car is purely colloquial and has a negative or derogatory meaning. It expresses that the car is old, loud, and in poor condition.
Sein erster Wagen war ein rostiger, klappriger Kübel.
His first car was a rusty, rickety old banger.
bin / ton
'die Tonne' and 'der Kübel' can both refer to large containers. The difference lies in their typical use. A 'Tonne' is often a larger container, especially for waste, or a large barrel. A 'Kübel' is more like an open container, often with handles, that you fill with water, soil, or other things. Learners may confuse the words because both seem like large containers. For waste, people usually say 'Tonne'; for an open container used when cleaning or in the garden, 'Kübel' is more likely. Colloquially, 'Kübel' can also mean an old car in a derogatory way.
Im Garten trägt Max einen Kübel mit Wasser zu den Blumen.
In the garden, Max carries a bucket of water to the flowers.
Am Abend stellt die Nachbarin die volle Tonne an die Straße.
In the evening, the neighbor puts the full bin by the road.