davenport

[ dav-uh n-pawrt, -pohrt ]

/ ˈdæv ənˌpɔrt, -ˌpoʊrt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR davenport ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a large sofa, often one convertible into a bed.

Chiefly British. a small writing desk.

Nearby words

davao, davao gulf, dave, daven, davenant, davenport, daventry, david, david copperfield, david i, david ii

Origin of davenport

First recorded in 1850–55; the desk is said to be named after a Captain Davenport who first commissioned it

Definition for davenport (2 of 2)

Davenport

[ dav-uh n-pawrt, -pohrt ]

/ ˈdæv ənˌpɔrt, -ˌpoʊrt /

noun

John,1597–1670, Puritan clergyman: one of the founders of New Haven.

a city in E Iowa, on the Mississippi River.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for davenport

“You can host a sit-down diner for 140, and the house can accommodate 700 people at a party,” Davenport says proudly.
'Lord Fraud' Gets Out of Jail, Back Into Orgies|Tom Sykes|August 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Since getting out, in May, Davenport says he has been attempting to pick up what he calls normal life.
'Lord Fraud' Gets Out of Jail, Back Into Orgies|Tom Sykes|August 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Five minutes later, wearing a dress shirt and jeans, Davenport appears.
'Lord Fraud' Gets Out of Jail, Back Into Orgies|Tom Sykes|August 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Why, I wonder, is Davenport so obsessed with defining himself as part of the British aristocracy?
'Lord Fraud' Gets Out of Jail, Back Into Orgies|Tom Sykes|August 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Mrs. Davenport has been married 24 years, so this is an issue of marital privacy.
The Town Where Your Sex Toy Could Land You in Jail|Emily Shire, Lizzie Crocker|May 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Miss Davenport is a Latin scholar, and they took her on the Traffords recommendation.
Wee Wifie|Rosa Nouchette Carey
When—but let me give you the remainder of Davenport's history while is is yet fresh in my memory.
Secresy|E. (Eliza) Fenwick
When I went into the den he was stretched on the davenport with his face buried in the cushions.
When a Man Marries|Mary Roberts Rinehart
As an example, a davenport is generally a horizontal mass intended to hold a number of people.
Industrial Arts Design|William H. Varnum
Why, that Jean Baptiste is sitting down there on the davenport with mama on one side of him and my sister on the other!
The Homesteader|Oscar Micheaux

British Dictionary definitions for davenport

davenport

/ (ˈdævənˌpɔːt) /

noun

mainly British a tall narrow desk with a slanted writing surface and drawers at the side

US and Canadian a large sofa, esp one convertible into a bed

Word Origin for davenport

C19: sense 1 said to be named after Captain Davenport, who commissioned the first ones

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