dumbwaiter

American  

[duhm-wey-ter] / ˈdʌmˌweɪ tər /

noun

1. a small elevator, manually or electrically operated, consisting typically of a box with shelves, used in apartment houses, restaurants, and large private dwellings for moving dishes, food, garbage, etc., between floors.

2. British.

   1. an auxiliary serving table.

   2. a serving stand with tiers of revolving shelves.

   3. a serving cart.

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dumbwaiter British  

/ ˈdʌmˌweɪtə /

noun

1. 1. a stand placed near a dining table to hold food

   2. US and Canadian name: lazy Susan.  a revolving circular tray placed on a table to hold food

2. a lift for carrying food, rubbish, etc, between floors

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Etymology

Origin of dumbwaiter

First recorded in 1745–55; dumb + waiter

Example Sentences

Joshua Shaw, a 27-year-old carpenter with Mavid Construction, died in June after he was struck by a dumbwaiter car while working inside one of the football stadium’s video scoreboards, WLUK-TV reported Tuesday.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 29, 2023

It's a dumbwaiter that was designed to carry these heavy glass plates.

From Scientific American • Jun. 22, 2023

And yet when I finally, as an adult, had a dumbwaiter shaft in my old, rented house, I found it scary, drafty.

From Salon • Jul. 13, 2022

Decorated in what she describes as a Parisian style, the roughly 130-year-old unit has vintage features including a 25-foot-long hallway, pocket doors and a butler’s pantry with a dumbwaiter.

From New York Times • Jun. 14, 2022

Another innovation was the dumbwaiter, which moved hot food and bottles of wine from the belowground kitchens and storerooms—called “dependencies”—up to the first floor.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis

Related Words

• escalator