Meanings
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1
noun
A flat object with raised edges used for carrying food, drinks, or other items.
The waiter carried the drinks over on a tray.
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2
noun
A flat part of a machine that slides in or out to hold something.
He put the disc into the CD tray and closed it.
Thesaurus
Etymology
From Middle English trey, from Old English trēġ, trīġ (“wooden board, tray”), from Proto-West Germanic *trauwi, from Proto-Germanic *trawją (“wooden vessel”), from Proto-Indo-European *drewo-, *dóru (“tree; wood”). Cognate with Old Norse treyja (“carrier”), Old Swedish trø (“wooden grain measure”), Low German Treechel (“dough trough”), Ancient Greek δροίτη (droítē, “tub, vat”), Sanskrit द्रोण (droṇa, “trough”). Related to trough and tree.