place mat

American  

noun

1. a mat set on a dining table beneath a place setting.

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Etymology

Origin of place mat

First recorded in 1950–55

Example Sentences

“I think you need to eat something,” she said, slapping the bowl onto a place mat, and she was right.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 3, 2025

Easier said than done when the crumbs of the antipasti are brushed away and your choice of pasta lands on the green-and-gold place mat.

From Washington Post • Feb. 3, 2023

Here’s a tea towel that begs for that application, or even to be used as a place mat.

From New York Times • Dec. 6, 2021

There is room for bits of Shakespeare, vaudeville theatrics and road trip trivia like the paper place mat maps at Howard Johnson’s restaurants.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 24, 2021

My finger traces patterns on the blue place mat.

From "Black Brother, Black Brother" by Jewell Parker Rhodes