gravy boat

American

noun

a small dish, often boat-shaped, for serving gravy or sauce.

gravy boat British

noun

a small often boat-shaped vessel for serving gravy or other sauces

"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 gravy boat

First recorded in 1890–95

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.

All you have to do is pour the gravy into a saucepan, warm it up and serve it in a gravy boat.

From Salon • Nov. 26, 2025

You might also realize you don’t have a crucial piece: Gluck once had to call her mom to bring a gravy boat.

From Washington Post • Nov. 9, 2021

"Everyone would make sure my grandad Eric didn't get hold of the gravy boat first, because there wouldn't be any left for the rest of the family," she says.

From BBC • Apr. 17, 2021

In one episode of Antiques Road Trip, auctioneer Philip Serrell likens an olden-times urination device to a gravy boat; this one echoes that tradition.

From Slate • Jul. 17, 2020

In his eagerness to help her, he knocked the gravy boat flying; Bill waved his wand and the gravy soared up in the air and returned meekly to the boat.

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