serviette

[ sur-vee-et ]

noun

, Chiefly British.

1. a table napkin.

serviette

/ ˌsɜːvɪˈɛt /

noun

1. a small square of cloth or paper used while eating to protect the clothes, wipe the mouth and hands, etc

Word History and Origins

Origin of serviette¹

1480–90; < Middle French, equivalent to servi ( r ) to serve + -ette -ette; for the formation, oubliette

Word History and Origins

Origin of serviette¹

C15: from Old French, from servir to serve ; formed on the model of oubliette

Example Sentences

I use a serviette that has been left on the side to wipe down the plate and then my face, then make my way back along the narrow corridors and into the restaurant.

From Salon

“I say this with so much love and affection, but I feel like we’re doing up a house together and he’s like, ‘Look at this serviette that I fashioned into the shape of two swans!

From New York Times

In all, Trainer had stolen 42 gold rings, 13 gold brooches, 12 silver watch chains, eight gold pendants, six watches, four silver serviette rings, two silver button hooks, one jewelled gold bracelet, one gold pencil case, one silver fruit knife, one silver matchbox, one scent bottle and one silver medal, worth a total of more than £40, plus several other articles that were never found.

From The Guardian

But not because of his talent for downing hellaciously spicy wings; people know Evans because he’s a sympathetic and consistently surprising interviewer — slightly more Terry Gross than Nardwuar The Human Serviette.

From The Verge

Related: Lionel Messi: how Argentinian teenager signed for Barcelona on a serviette | Sid Lowe Messi and his father, Jorge Horacio Messi, arrived 10 minutes late on the third day of their trial, the first day they were obliged to attend.

From The Guardian

Related Words

• cloth
• towel