tray

noun

ˈtrā 

: an open receptacle with a flat bottom and a low rim for holding, carrying, or exhibiting articles

trayful

ˈtrā-ˌfu̇l 

noun

Examples of tray in a Sentence

She carried the tray of food to our table.

a car with several storage trays

Recent Examples on the Web

To freeze cilantro, wash and dry the herbs, chop them, place them in ice cube trays, and place in the freezer until frozen. —Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 14 Aug. 2025

Set up a large container for the dry mix and another container for the wet, as well as a sheet tray lined with parchment for the chicken pieces. —Caron Golden, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025

But as new rows of servers are added, the physical cabling between leaf switches and the spine can quickly overwhelm cable trays and conduits. —Bhupendra Singh, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025

One of the women looks upset, while the other holds a small cardboard tray with drinks from Starbucks. —Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 9 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English trīg, trēg; akin to Old Swedish trø wooden grain measure and probably to Old English trēow tree — more at tree entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing tray

• baking tray
• in tray
• litter tray
• out tray
• tea tray

Rhymes for tray

• ay
• bay
• bey
• brae
• cay
• chez
• dey
• dray
• fay
• fey
• flay
• fray

Kids Definition

tray

noun

ˈtrā 

: an open container with flat bottom and low rim for holding, carrying, or exhibiting articles

trayful

-ˌfu̇l 

noun

Medical Definition

tray

noun

ˈtrā 

: an appliance consisting of a flanged body and a handle for use in holding plastic material against the gums or teeth in making negative impressions for dentures