pewter

[ pyoo-ter ]
See synonyms for pewter on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. any of various alloys in which tin is the chief constituent, originally one of tin and lead.

  2. a container or utensil made of such an alloy.

  1. such utensils collectively: a revival of interest in pewter.

  2. British Slang.

adjective
  1. consisting or made of pewter: a pewter mug.

Origin of pewter

1
1325–75; Middle English pewtre<Middle French peutre<Vulgar Latin *piltrum; perhaps akin to spelter

Words Nearby pewter

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use pewter in a sentence

  • I had gone to Williamsburg when turning sixteen, and soon learned to love and wear gold and silver buckles on a pewter income.

    A Virginia Scout | Hugh Pendexter
  • One's imagination ran riot when one pictured the people who must have laid those pewter plates on the long, narrow, solid table.

  • You veterans of the pewter know best how much ale to carry with you to bed.

    The Reckoning | Robert W. Chambers

British Dictionary definitions for pewter

pewter

/ (ˈpjuːtə) /


noun
    • any of various alloys containing tin (80–90 per cent), lead (10–20 per cent), and sometimes small amounts of other metals, such as copper and antimony

    • (as modifier): pewter ware; a pewter tankard

    • a bluish-grey colour

    • (as adjective): pewter tights

  1. plate or kitchen utensils made from pewter

Origin of pewter

1
C14: from Old French peaultre, of obscure origin; related to Old Provençal peltre pewter

Derived forms of pewter

  • pewterer, noun

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