tray

/treɪ/

/treɪ/

Other forms: trays

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.

Definitions of tray

1. noun

   an open receptacle for holding or displaying or serving articles or food
   types:

   alms dish, alms tray

   a tray for collecting the offering from a congregation

   cafeteria tray

   a tray for carrying your food in a cafeteria

   cheese tray, cheeseboard

   tray on which cheeses are served

   icetray

   a tray for making cubes of ice in a refrigerator

   inkstand

   a tray or stand for writing implements and containers for ink

   salver

   a tray (or large plate) for serving food or drinks; usually made of silver

   tea tray

   a tray that accommodates a tea service

   lazy Susan, turntable

   a revolving tray placed on a dining table

   type of:

   receptacle

   a container that is used to put or keep things in