tray
1 Americannoun
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a flat, shallow container or receptacle made of wood, metal, etc., usually with slightly raised edges, used for carrying, holding, or displaying articles of food, glass, china, etc.
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a removable receptacle of this shape in a cabinet, box, trunk, or the like, sometimes forming a drawer.
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a tray and its contents.
to order a breakfast tray from room service.
noun
noun
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a thin flat board or plate of metal, plastic, etc, usually with a raised edge, on which things can be carried
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a shallow receptacle for papers, etc, sometimes forming a drawer in a cabinet or box
Etymology
Origin of tray1
before 1050; Middle English; Old English trēg, trīg; cognate with Old Swedish trö corn measure; akin to tree
Origin of tray2
1895–1900; compare earlier argot trey, tray three, a set of three, probably ultimately < Italian tre (< Latin trēs three ); cf. trey
Explanation
A tray is a flat dish or container that's used to carry or serve food. Your little sister and her friends will get pretty excited if you bring them a tray of chocolate cupcakes. Trays are made of many different materials, including wood, silver, and plastic. Most trays hold food, but they can also be used for carrying, storing, or displaying all kinds of things. A surgeon might select an instrument from a sterile stainless steel tray, and a writer might keep a wooden tray on her desk to hold paper and pens. Waiters and butlers carry trays of food, and you might leave a coffee shop carrying four hot chocolates in a cardboard tray.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Tray tables had one purpose: to be unfolded before a TV set so that instead of conversing with others around a dining-room table, people could eat while mutely staring at a TV screen.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026
In another, Dyer describes a Cadbury Milk Tray that his dad purchased for his mother each year on Valentine’s Day though his mom didn’t like chocolate.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2025
Today's playlist provides an introduction to some of the musicians Bradley mentions in his article, like the folk-poet Kara Jackson and the lightning-fingered banjo player Tray Wellington.
From New York Times • Nov. 14, 2023
“We are always concerned about a one-size-fits-all bill like this,” Tray Abney, a lobbyist for the National Federation of Independent Businesses, told Nevada legislators.
From Washington Times • Aug. 28, 2023
Tray in hand, Mister Mancini took a seat and pretended not to notice.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
