roll top
Americannoun
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a flexible, sliding cover for the working area of a desk, opening by rising upward and back in quadrantal grooves and rolling up beneath the top.
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Also called rolltop desk. Also called roll-top desk,. a desk with such a cover.
Etymology
Origin of roll top
An Americanism dating back to 1885–90
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.
It has a 400-cubic-centimeter, two-stroke, two-cylinder engine tucked in the back, and a convertible roll top.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 16, 2025
Cover with each roll top, and serve with cornichons on the side, if desired.
From Washington Post • Jun. 28, 2022
I love that it can switch between being a flap-style bag or a roll top, depending on how much stuff I’ve tried to pack in.
From The Verge • Aug. 19, 2021
The roll top ensures that it will pack small on the way to your destination but give the option for extra room on the way back for any momentos you picked up along the way.
From Golf Digest • Dec. 3, 2018
"We'll go up there and take a look!" exclaimed Mr. Santley, grabbing his hat and banging down the roll top of his desk and locking it.
From Navy Boys Behind the Big Guns Sinking the German U-Boats by Owen, R. Emmett (Robert Emmett)
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.
