As it turns out, a bucket (From Old English boket), is a container made of *any* rigid material (metal, plastic), often with a handle, used to carry liquids or small solid items.

A pail, one the other hand, though a synonym, had a slightly different meaning. It’s a vessel of wood or tin (almost never any other material), usually cylindrical and having a bail, — used esp. for carrying liquids, as water or milk, etc.

(So, a pail may have a bail, rarely meant to carry solids and is rarely made of anything but wood or some metal such as tin).

A pail is a smaller container, usually something a child can carry when full of liquid.

i’m originally from australia and i am constantly having to make sure i say the right word or jargon here in the US.

for example, when i first came to america, i ordered breakfast and Denny’s — sausage, eggs, toasts, etc. then the waitress asked me what flavor jelly i wanted. i thought that was kind of weird to have at breakfast but maybe it was an american thing. when she brought our orders i asked her where my “jelly” was and she pointed at my “jam.”

I was expecting a bowl of wiggly gelatin.

luckily my uncle, who had been stationed in australia while in the navy, explained to me that “jelly” in america is equivalent to “jam” in australia, and “jello” in america is the same as “jelly” in australia.

after nine years in america there are still so many other words that confuse me. 😀