ashtray

American

[ash-trey] / ˈæʃˌtreɪ /

noun

a receptacle for tobacco ashes of smokers.

ashtray British

/ ˈæʃˌtreɪ /

noun

a receptacle for tobacco ash, cigarette butts, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of ashtray

First recorded in 1885–90; ash ¹ + tray ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Baltimore Ravens legend Ed Reed frequently comments on his posts and recently sent him a branded cigar ashtray.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 19, 2025

Five months in, I found myself on the floor, surrounded by the shattered remains of the porcelain ashtray I’d bought him.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 20, 2024

“Well, if you’re not doing anything . . . I don’t know. I feel like I’m going back two years of my life. I don’t even think about it anymore. Nice ashtray by the way.”

From Salon • May 16, 2024

But sip on wine made from grapes that were penetrated by smoke, and it could taste like someone dumped the contents of an ashtray into your glass.

From Washington Times • Sep. 28, 2023

Hermione crawled out from underneath the bench, shaking bits of glass ashtray out of her hair and trembling all over.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023