Brainpans

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A colloquial term referring to the skull or cranium that houses the brain; often used informally to describe someone's mind or intellect; can also denote the literal structure of the head in anatomical contexts
2. An informal expression for the bony structure protecting the brain, sometimes implying the mental capacity of a person; refers to the head as an entity in social discussions or humor; also used in scientific naming of cranial features
3. A casual way to describe the upper part of the head containing the brain; may imply evaluating a person's mental faculties; used in both biological and metaphorical discussions about intellect or thought processes

Etymology: "Brainpans" is simply the plural of "brainpan," and the singular has a surprisingly literal history: the first half is the ordinary word "brain," and the second is "pan," the same word that names a cooking vessel. The compound goes back to Old English "bræġnpanne," and it was already a set phrase by the Middle English "brayn panne." The image is of the skull as a shallow bowl or dish holding the brain, much as a kitchen pan holds food. The pairing is an old, direct description rather than a later metaphor. English speakers have long used "pan" for any broad, shallow container, and in compounds it can refer to a hollow or bowl-like part of the body. A "brainpan" is therefore the cranium understood as the vessel that holds the brain, which explains why the word still sounds faintly homely and anatomical at once.

Synonyms: skulls, craniums