leyden phial

{ pr>(fī"&aitalic_;l).} n. (Elec.) A glass jar or bottle used to accumulate electricity. It is coated with tin foil, within and without, nearly to its top, and is surmounted by a brass knob which communicates with the inner coating, for the purpose of charging it with electricity. It is so named from having been invented in Leyden, Holland. [1913 Webster]