tray

¹ American  

[tray] / treɪ /

noun

1. a flat, shallow container or receptacle made of wood, metal, etc., usually with slightly raised edges, used for carrying, holding, or displaying articles of food, glass, china, etc.

2. a removable receptacle of this shape in a cabinet, box, trunk, or the like, sometimes forming a drawer.

3. a tray and its contents.

   to order a breakfast tray from room service.

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tray ² American  

[tray] / treɪ /

noun

Australian Slang.

1. a coin worth threepence.

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tray British  

/ treɪ /

noun

1. a thin flat board or plate of metal, plastic, etc, usually with a raised edge, on which things can be carried

2. a shallow receptacle for papers, etc, sometimes forming a drawer in a cabinet or box

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Etymology

Origin of tray¹

before 1050; Middle English; Old English trēg, trīg; cognate with Old Swedish trö corn measure; akin to tree

Origin of tray²

1895–1900; compare earlier argot trey, tray three, a set of three, probably ultimately < Italian tre (< Latin trēs three ); cf. trey

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Explanation

A tray is a flat dish or container that's used to carry or serve food. Your little sister and her friends will get pretty excited if you bring them a tray of chocolate cupcakes. Trays are made of many different materials, including wood, silver, and plastic. Most trays hold food, but they can also be used for carrying, storing, or displaying all kinds of things. A surgeon might select an instrument from a sterile stainless steel tray, and a writer might keep a wooden tray on her desk to hold paper and pens. Waiters and butlers carry trays of food, and you might leave a coffee shop carrying four hot chocolates in a cardboard tray.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tray

“There’s some point in which memories become dreams,” Cooks said of the forms that gradually cohere, shimmering, like film in a developing tray.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 21, 2026

Camossi said that Pioneer hand-inspected every tray before it went out the door.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

USA Today published a photo earlier this year of a sailor’s mostly empty lunch tray, which included a few chunks of boiled carrot and processed meat of an indeterminate nature.

From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026

Then a smiling man walks in carrying another tray.

From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026

I sneak a warm, savory spoonful while loading up a tray.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

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Related Words

• plate

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