salver
Americannoun
-
salvers
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of salver
1655–65; < Spanish salv ( a ) kind of tray (originally protective foretasting, derivative of salvar to save < Latin salvāre ) + -er 1
Explanation
A salver is a fancy serving tray that's usually made of silver. If the Queen of England is dropping by for lunch, you might want to set the table with your best salvers! While salvers are sometimes made of another metal (or even glass), they're mainly silver trays used in special circumstances. Years ago, servants would serve food using a salver, or collect glasses and carry them away on a salver. If you were a wealthy person sitting at your writing desk, a maid or butler might even have brought your mail on a salver. The word comes from the French salve, "tray for presenting objects to the king."
Vocabulary lists containing salver
The Importance of Being Earnest
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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
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Tolkien Reading Day, List 8
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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.
See Examples For:
The engraved silver salver bore the mark of Dorothy Mills, one of just a handful of registered female silversmiths working in the 1700s, the NT said.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
Three new biographies underline the premise that life can be tough, even for those who have it handed to them on a silver salver.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 16, 2018
He looked around, called upon David Moyes, and together they held up the silver salver.
From New York Times ● Aug. 11, 2013
The salver is obviously in its inaugural year, following the untimely death of the peerless darts commentator, but instantly there was a clear winner.
From The Guardian ● Dec. 30, 2012
There was no sign of a strange cap or stick, and no card on the salver.
From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier
Other items included tea services, candlesticks, salvers and presentation pieces.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
We can't bear to admit defeat, because to do so is to make life seem more finite, less likely to be peopled with attractive strangers bearing silver salvers heaped with onion puffs.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 19, 2011
We can’t bear to admit defeat, because to do so is to make life seem more finite, less likely to be peopled with attractive strangers bearing silver salvers heaped with onion puffs.
From New York Times ● Jul. 15, 2011
The purses were carried on large salvers by Yeoman Warders from the Tower of London.
From BBC ● Apr. 1, 2010
To find a way out seemed at present far more important than more silver tankards and salvers.
From The Manor House School by Arthur A. Dixon
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.
