Definition of "cresset" []

• A metal cup, often suspended on a pole, containing burning oil or pitch and used as a torch. (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.

• "The lantern, a kind of cresset protected by a wire globe, was suspended from the roof by a string."
• "The leaves of the square-stemmed figwort, which they called 'cresset' or 'cressil,' were occasionally placed on a sore; and the yarrow -- locally 'yarra' -- was yet held in estimation as a salve or ointment."
• "a "cresset," the flames of which were fed with "scrap," which blazed brilliantly, throwing a big glare over all the ship."