Meaning & use
ashtray
Last updated
UK/ˈæʃtreɪ/
US/ˈæʃtreɪ/
Meaning
nouncountable
A small dish or container for putting out cigarettes and holding their ash and ends.
Grammar: Plural is ashtrays; it is usually used with on or in: an ashtray on the table.
Patterns
- put something in an ashtray
- an ashtray full of something
He stubbed his cigarette out in the glass ashtray.
The old cafe still keeps a metal ashtray on every outdoor table.
She emptied the ashtray before the guests arrived.
Word forms
| plural | ashtrays |
|---|
Common combinations
- empty an ashtray
- Please empty the ashtray on the balcony.
- overflowing ashtray
- An overflowing ashtray stood next to his laptop.
- glass ashtray
- A heavy glass ashtray sat on the desk.
- stub out in an ashtray
- He stubbed it out in the ashtray and left.
- car ashtray
- The car ashtray was full of coins.
Synonyms and how they differ
- ash receiver
- Ash receiver is a rare, formal term often found in official safety notices, while ashtray is the everyday word.
- cigarette dish
- Cigarette dish is a descriptive phrase and sounds unusual to most speakers.
- butt can
- Butt can, a standing outdoor bin for cigarette ends, is an informal American term for a larger container.
Word family
Practice
After the party, I found a cigarette still smoking in the ___ on the patio.
Choose one answer.
An ashtray is the container made for putting out cigarettes. The other objects are ordinary items but are not meant for that use.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ashtray”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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