Definition of "bedpan" [bed•pan]

• A metal, glass, or plastic receptacle for the urinary and fecal discharges of persons confined to bed. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "He was comforting, even lighthearted as he held the bedpan while Geraldine vomited, and when he rubbed her neck and legs to relieve their deep, persistent pain, smiling and making jokes to lessen her embarrassment."
• "Whenever standards fell short – whenever, in Aneurin Bevan's phrase, a bedpan was dropped – the echoes would reverberate through Whitehall."
• "Your process may not require all 40 steps -- some of which involve offering the patient a bedpan, sponge bathing and replacing protective covers under the bedsheets -- but it surely takes more steps than we tend to think about as we hurriedly make our own beds in the morning."