decanter
Americannoun
-
a vessel, usually an ornamental glass bottle, for holding and serving wine, brandy, or the like.
-
a bottle used for decanting.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of decanter
Explanation
Want an extra fancy way to serve a beverage? Put it in a decanter, an elegant glass container with a stopper. A decanter is similar to a carafe, a wide-mouthed vessel for serving liquids, except it has a narrower neck and a stopper. Particularly ornate decanters are made of cut crystal and are meant to hold wine, which some people believe should "breathe" before being poured and sipped. Decanter comes from the verb decant, "to pour," and its Medieval Latin source, decanthare, "pour from the edge of a vessel."
Vocabulary lists containing decanter
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
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The Sound and the Fury
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Around the World in Eighty Days
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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.
See Examples For:
The Limited Lake Edition decanter comes in turquoise, deep blue and amber, and its digitally crafted and 3D-printed base is available in ash and sand.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 17, 2024
Viski Globe Decanter and Whiskey Tumblers Set: For the world traveler or distinguished home office, this globe decanter and whiskey tumbler set make a classy gift and a modern take on the home globe bar.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 1, 2022
Fortunately, I could move the rose-scented decanter to the bathroom, where it probably belonged, anyway.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 20, 2022
The Cyberwhistle is in the lifestyle products section of Tesla's website, which also includes items such as $150 decanter, a $30 "S3XY" logo mug, and several diecast models of the company's vehicles.
From BBC ● Nov. 30, 2021
She ate until her stomach was full, and then Con poured something from a decanter shaped like a bird into the crystal goblet at her elbow.
From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo
On view are examples of bulbous book bindings, acid-etched vases, satin capes, parchment-covered cabinets, angular decanters, diamond-decorated cloche hats, geometric malachite brooches, stark bas-reliefs, Brancusi-faced collar ads, and boxy, black-lacquer screens.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025
Evans described first-class cabins that included fine china, liquor cabinets with crystal decanters, hair creams in ceramic jars from Paris, solid gold spectacles and Wild West clothing.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 1, 2022
Unfiltered Port forms a sediment, or crust, in the bottle, requiring decanting into … well … decanters, allowing oxygen to mix with the Port while the sediment is left in the bottle.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 16, 2022
According to the weekly publication, some of the other pilfered items are seven gold candelabras, several Russian icons, a 10-piece silver dressing table set and St. Louis gilt crystal glassware and decanters.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 2022
Certainly when Slughorn, who had been busy with decanters and glasses, turned to face the room again, his eyes fell immediately upon Harry.
From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling
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.
