"dry powder" meaning in English

{
  "etymology_text": "The financial sense comes by metaphor from the sense of gunpowder kept dry to allow rapid loading of a firearm, as in the expression “keep one's powder dry”.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "dry powders",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "~"
      },
      "expansion": "dry powder (countable and uncountable, plural dry powders)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "A powder found in a fire extinguisher that is expelled to smother the fire (in contrast with liquid types of extinguisher)."
      ],
      "id": "en-dry_powder-en-noun-uCHztph0",
      "links": [
        [
          "fire extinguisher",
          "fire extinguisher"
        ],
        [
          "fire",
          "fire"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "83 5 1 12",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "powder from a fire extinguisher",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "Löschpulver"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "A powder found in an inhaler that delivers a bronchodilator for antiasthmatic or antiemphysemic purposes (indications)."
      ],
      "id": "en-dry_powder-en-noun-xuXaUz~s",
      "links": [
        [
          "inhaler",
          "inhaler"
        ],
        [
          "bronchodilator",
          "bronchodilator"
        ],
        [
          "antiasthmatic",
          "antiasthmatic"
        ],
        [
          "antiemphysemic",
          "antiemphysemic"
        ],
        [
          "indication",
          "indication"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Finance",
          "orig": "en:Finance",
          "parents": [
            "Business",
            "Economics",
            "Society",
            "Social sciences",
            "All topics",
            "Sciences",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "31 15 42 12",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "17 18 56 8",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "28 14 45 12",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "28 13 48 11",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "19 15 57 10",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Private equity firms were sitting on more than $1 trillion in dry powder at the end of 2011.",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Cash (or cash-like securities) kept in reserve in case of need."
      ],
      "id": "en-dry_powder-en-noun-iAR3lV3Z",
      "links": [
        [
          "finance",
          "finance#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "Cash",
          "cash"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(finance) Cash (or cash-like securities) kept in reserve in case of need."
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "_dis1": "15 18 51 17",
          "sense": "stay prepared, maintain reserves",
          "word": "keep one's powder dry"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "business",
        "finance"
      ]
    },
    {
      "derived": [
        {
          "_dis1": "24 25 0 51",
          "word": "dry powder inhaler"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see dry, powder; especially, gunpowder kept dry to keep it from spoiling before use."
      ],
      "id": "en-dry_powder-en-noun-5wdUlnH5",
      "links": [
        [
          "dry",
          "dry#English"
        ],
        [
          "powder",
          "powder#English"
        ],
        [
          "gunpowder",
          "gunpowder"
        ],
        [
          "dry",
          "dry#Adjective"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "dry powder"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "English uncountable nouns",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Terms with German translations"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "dry powder inhaler"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "The financial sense comes by metaphor from the sense of gunpowder kept dry to allow rapid loading of a firearm, as in the expression “keep one's powder dry”.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "dry powders",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "~"
      },
      "expansion": "dry powder (countable and uncountable, plural dry powders)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "sense": "stay prepared, maintain reserves",
      "word": "keep one's powder dry"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "A powder found in a fire extinguisher that is expelled to smother the fire (in contrast with liquid types of extinguisher)."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "fire extinguisher",
          "fire extinguisher"
        ],
        [
          "fire",
          "fire"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "A powder found in an inhaler that delivers a bronchodilator for antiasthmatic or antiemphysemic purposes (indications)."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "inhaler",
          "inhaler"
        ],
        [
          "bronchodilator",
          "bronchodilator"
        ],
        [
          "antiasthmatic",
          "antiasthmatic"
        ],
        [
          "antiemphysemic",
          "antiemphysemic"
        ],
        [
          "indication",
          "indication"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "en:Finance"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Private equity firms were sitting on more than $1 trillion in dry powder at the end of 2011.",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Cash (or cash-like securities) kept in reserve in case of need."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "finance",
          "finance#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "Cash",
          "cash"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(finance) Cash (or cash-like securities) kept in reserve in case of need."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "business",
        "finance"
      ]
    },
    {
      "glosses": [
        "Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see dry, powder; especially, gunpowder kept dry to keep it from spoiling before use."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "dry",
          "dry#English"
        ],
        [
          "powder",
          "powder#English"
        ],
        [
          "gunpowder",
          "gunpowder"
        ],
        [
          "dry",
          "dry#Adjective"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "powder from a fire extinguisher",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "Löschpulver"
    }
  ],
  "word": "dry powder"
}