Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

coffee table

American  

noun

  1. a low table, usually placed in front of a sofa, for holding ashtrays, snack bowls, glasses, magazines, etc.

coffee table British  

noun

  1. a low table, on which newspapers, etc, may be placed and coffee served

  2. (modifier) implying an emphasis on appearance and style over substance

    coffee-table music
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of coffee table

First recorded in 1875–80

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.

On a notebook on her coffee table, she wrote Cynthia Renee Ortiz, doodling hearts around her prospective married name.

From Slate • Apr. 6, 2026

His team is also planning to release a coffee table book about Los Angeles culture.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

The entrepreneur and fashion brand founder has an enormous pile of the gold-wrapped candies sitting in a bowl on her coffee table, available to her any time she needs a snack.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 30, 2025

In front of us, on a coffee table, rests a pile of family photographs.

From BBC • Dec. 28, 2025

Teddy picks up his head for just long enough to nod, and I bring the box over to the coffee table.

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

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.