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Webster 1913 Edition

Table

Ta′ble

(tā′’l)
,
Noun.
[F., fr. L.
tabula
a board, tablet, a painting. Cf.
Tabular
,
Taffrail
,
Tavern
.]
1.
A smooth, flat surface, like the side of a board; a thin, flat, smooth piece of anything; a slab.
A bagnio paved with fair
tables
of marble.
Sandys.
2.
A thin, flat piece of wood, stone, metal, or other material, on which anything is cut, traced, written, or painted; a tablet
;
pl.
a memorandum book.
“The names . . . written on his tables.”
Chaucer.
And the Lord said unto Moses, Hew thee two
tables
of stone like unto the first, and I will write upon these
tables
the words that were in the first
tables
, which thou brakest.
Ex. xxxiv. 1.
And stand there with your
tables
to glean
The golden sentences.
Beau. & Fl.
3.
Any smooth, flat surface upon which an inscription, a drawing, or the like, may be produced.
“Painted in a table plain.”
Spenser.
The opposite walls are painted by Rubens, which, with that other of the Infanta taking leave of Don Philip, is a most incomparable
table
.
Evelyn.
St. Antony has a
table
that hangs up to him from a poor peasant.
Addison.
4.
Hence, in a great variety of applications: A condensed statement which may be comprehended by the eye in a single view; a methodical or systematic synopsis; the presentation of many items or particulars in one group; a scheme; a schedule.
Specifically: –
(a)
(Bibliog.)
A view of the contents of a work; a statement of the principal topics discussed; an index; a syllabus; a synopsis;
as, a
table
of contents
.
(b)
(Chem.)
A list of substances and their properties; especially, the a list of the elementary substances with their atomic weights, densities, symbols, etc.; the periodic table of the elements.
(c)
(Mathematics, Science and Technology)
Any collection and arrangement in a condensed form of many particulars or values, for ready reference, as of weights, measures, currency, specific gravities, etc.; also, a series of numbers following some law, and expressing particular values corresponding to certain other numbers on which they depend, and by means of which they are taken out for use in computations;
as,
tables
of logarithms, sines, tangents, squares, cubes, etc.; annuity
tables
; interest
tables
; astronomical
tables
; a
table
of logarithms, etc.
(d)
(Palmistry)
The arrangement or disposition of the lines which appear on the inside of the hand.
Mistress of a fairer
table

Hath not history for fable.
B. Jonson.
5.
An article of furniture, consisting of a flat slab, board, or the like, having a smooth surface, fixed horizontally on legs, and used for a great variety of purposes, as in eating, writing, or working.
We may again
Give to our
tables
meat.
Shakespeare
The nymph the
table
spread.
Pope.
6.
Hence, food placed on a table to be partaken of; fare; entertainment;
as, to set a good
table
.
7.
The company assembled round a table.
I drink the general joy of the whole
table
.
Shakespeare
8.
(Anat.)
One of the two, external and internal, layers of compact bone, separated by diploe, in the walls of the cranium.
9.
(Arch.)
A stringcourse which includes an offset; esp., a band of stone, or the like, set where an offset is required, so as to make it decorative. See
Water table
.
10.
(Games)
(a)
The board on the opposite sides of which backgammon and draughts are played.
(b)
One of the divisions of a backgammon board;
as, to play into the right-hand
table
.
(c)
pl.
The games of backgammon and of draughts.
[Obs.]
Chaucer.
This is the ape of form, monsieur the nice,
That, when he plays at
tables
, chides the dice.
Shakespeare
11.
(Glass Manuf.)
A circular plate of crown glass.
A circular plate or
table
of about five feet diameter weighs on an average nine pounds.
Ure.
12.
(Jewelry)
The upper flat surface of a diamond or other precious stone, the sides of which are cut in angles.
13.
(Persp.)
A plane surface, supposed to be transparent and perpendicular to the horizon; – called also
perspective plane
.
14.
(Mach.)
The part of a machine tool on which the work rests and is fastened.
Bench table
,
Card table
,
Communion table
,
Lord’s table
,
etc. See under
Bench
,
Card
, etc.
–
Raised table
(Arch. & Sculp.)
,
a raised or projecting member of a flat surface, large in proportion to the projection, and usually rectangular, – especially intended to receive an inscription or the like.
–
Roller table
(Horology)
,
a flat disk on the arbor of the balance of a watch, holding the jewel which rolls in and out of the fork at the end of the lever of the escapement.
–
Round table
.
See Dictionary of Noted Names in Fiction.
–
Table anvil
,
a small anvil to be fastened to a table for use in making slight repairs.
–
Table base
.
(Arch.)
Same as
Water table
.
–
Table bed
,
a bed in the form of a table.
–
Table beer
,
beer for table, or for common use; small beer.
–
Table bell
,
a small bell to be used at table for calling servants.
–
Table cover
,
a cloth for covering a table, especially at other than mealtimes.
–
Table diamond
,
a thin diamond cut with a flat upper surface.
–
Table linen
,
linen tablecloth, napkins, and the like.
–
Table money
(Mil. or Naut.)
,
an allowance sometimes made to officers over and above their pay, for table expenses.
–
Table rent
(O. Eng. Law)
,
rent paid to a bishop or religious, reserved or appropriated to his table or housekeeping.
Burrill.
–
Table shore
(Naut.)
,
a low, level shore.
–
Table talk
,
conversation at table, or at meals.
–
Table talker
,
one who talks at table.
–
Table tipping
,
Table turning
,
certain movements of tables, etc., attributed by some to the agency of departed spirits, and by others to the development of latent vital or spriritual forces, but more commonly ascribed to the muscular force of persons in connection with the objects moved, or to physical force applied otherwise.
–
Tables of a girder
or
Tables of a chord
(Engin.)
,
the upper and lower horizontal members.
–
To lay on the table
,
in parliamentary usage, to lay, as a report, motion, etc., on the table of the presiding officer, – that is, to postpone the consideration of, by a vote; – also called to
table
. It is a tactic often used with the intention of postponing consideration of a motion indefinitely, that is, to kill the motion.
–
To serve tables
(Script.)
,
to provide for the poor, or to distribute provisions for their wants.
Acts vi. 2.
–
To turn the tables
,
to change the condition or fortune of contending parties; – a metaphorical expression taken from the vicissitudes of fortune in gaming.
–
Twelve tables
(Rom. Antiq.)
,
a celebrated body of Roman laws, framed by decemvirs appointed 450 years before Christ, on the return of deputies or commissioners who had been sent to Greece to examine into foreign laws and institutions. They consisted partly of laws transcribed from the institutions of other nations, partly of such as were altered and accommodated to the manners of the Romans, partly of new provisions, and mainly, perhaps, of laws and usages under their ancient kings.
Burrill.

Ta′ble

(tā′b’l)
,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Tabled
(tā′b’ld)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Tabling
(tā′bling)
.]
1.
To form into a table or catalogue; to tabulate;
as, to
table
fines
.
2.
To delineate, as on a table; to represent, as in a picture.
[Obs.]
Tabled
and pictured in the chambers of meditation.
Bacon.
3.
To supply with food; to feed.
[Obs.]
Milton.
4.
(Carp.)
To insert, as one piece of timber into another, by alternate scores or projections from the middle, to prevent slipping; to scarf.
5.
To lay or place on a table, as money.
Carlyle.
6.
In parliamentary usage, to lay on the table; to postpone, by a formal vote, the consideration of (a bill, motion, or the like) till called for, or indefinitely.
7.
To enter upon the docket;
as, to
table
charges against some one
.
8.
(Naut.)
To make broad hems in the skirts and bottoms of (sails) in order to strengthen them in the part attached to the boltrope.

Ta′ble

,
Verb.
I.
To live at the table of another; to board; to eat.
[Obs.]
“He . . . was driven from the society of men to table with the beasts.”
South.

Webster 1828 Edition

Table

TA'BLE

,
Noun.
[L. tabula.]
1.
A flat surface of some extent, or a thing that has a flat surface; as a table of marble.
2.
An article of furniture, consisting usually of a frame with a surface of boards or of marble, supported by legs, and used for a great variety of purposes, as for holding dishes of meat, for writing on, &c.
The nymph the table spread.
3.
Fare or entertainment of provisions; as, he keeps a good table.
4.
The persons sitting at table or partaking of entertainment.
I drink to th' general joy of the whole table.
5.
A tablet; a surface on which any thing is written or engraved. The ten commandments were written on two tables of stone. Ex.32.
Written--not on tables of stone, but on fleshly tables of the heart. 2 Cor. 3.
6.
A picture, or something that exhibits a view of any thing on a flat surface.
Saint Anthony has a table that hangs up to him from a poor peasant.
7.
Among Christians, the table, or Lord's table, is the sacrament, or holy communion of the Lord's supper.
8.
The altar of burnt-offering. Mal. 1.
9.
In architecture, a smooth, simple member or ornament of various forms, most usually in that of a long square.
10. In perspective, a plain surface, supposed to be transparent and perpendicular to the horizon. It is called also perspective plane.
11. In anatomy, a division of the cranium or skull. The cranium is composed of two tables or lamins, with a cellular structure between them, called the meditallium or diploe.
12. In the glass manufacture, a circular sheet of finished glass, usually about four feet in diameter, each weighing from ten to eleven pounds. Twelve of these are called a side or crate of glass.
13. In literature, an index; a collection of heads or principal matters contained in a book, with references to the pages where each may be found; as a table of contents.
14. A synopsis; many particulars brought into one view.
15. The palm of the hand.
Mistress of a fairer table
Hath not history nor fable.
16. Draughts; small pieces of wood shifted on squares.
We are in the world like men playing at tables.
17. In mathematics, tables are systems of numbers calculated to be ready for expediting operations; as a table of logarithms; a multiplication table.
18. Astronomical tables, are computations of the motions, places and other phenomena of the planets, both primary and secondary.
19. In chimistry, a list or catalogue of substances or their properties; as a table of known acids; a table of acidifiable bases; a table of binary combinations; a table of specific gravities.
20. In general, any series of numbers formed on mathematical or other correct principles.
21. A division of the ten commandments; as the first and second tables. The first table comprehends our more immediate duties to God; the second table our more immediate duties to each other.
22. Among jewelers, a table diamond or other precious stone, is one whose upper surface is quite flat, and the sides only cut in angles.
23. A list or catalogue; as a table of stars.
Raised table, in sculpture, an embossment in a frontispiece for an inscription or other ornament, supposed to be the abacus of Vitruvius.
Round Table. Knights of the round table, are a military order instituted by Arthur, the first king of the Britons, A.D. 516.
Twelve Tables, the laws of the Romans, so called probably, because engraved on so many tables.
To turn the tables, to change the condition or fortune of contending parties; a metaphorical expression taken from the vicissitudes of fortune in gaming.
To serve tables, to provide for the poor; or to distribute provisions for their wants. Acts.6.

TA'BLE

,
Verb.
I.
To board; to diet or live at the table of another. Nebuchadnezzar tabled with the beasts.

TA'BLE

,
Verb.
T.
To form into a table or catalogue; as, to table fines. In England, the chirographer tables the fines of every county, and fixes a copy in some open place of the court.
1.
To board; to supply with food.
2.
To let one piece of timber into another by alternate scores or projections from the middle.

Definition 2024

Table

Table

See also: table and tablé

French

Proper noun

Table

  1. Mensa (constellation)

Anagrams

table

table

See also: Table and tablé

English


A table (furniture).
A table of characters in the Arabic alphabet.

Noun

table ‎(plural tables)

  1. Furniture with a top surface to accommodate a variety of uses.
    1. An item of furniture with a flat top surface raised above the ground, usually on one or more legs.
      • 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 6, in Mr. Pratt's Patients:
        He had one hand on the bounce bottle—and he'd never let go of that since he got back to the table—but he had a handkerchief in the other and was swabbing his deadlights with it.
      • 1963, Margery Allingham, “Foreword”, in The China Governess:
        A very neat old woman, still in her good outdoor coat and best beehive hat, was sitting at a polished mahogany table on whose surface there were several scored scratches so deep that a triangular piece of the veneer had come cleanly away, […].
    2. A flat tray which can be used as a table.
    3. (poker, metonymically)  The lineup of players at a given table.
      That's the strongest table I've ever seen at a European Poker Tour event‎
    4. A group of people at a table, for example for a meal or game.
      • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 8, in The Celebrity:
        The humor of my proposition appealed more strongly to Miss Trevor than I had looked for, and from that time forward she became her old self again; […] . Our table in the dining-room became again the abode of scintillating wit and caustic repartee, Farrar bracing up to his old standard, and the demand for seats in the vicinity rose to an animated competition.
    5. A service of Holy Communion.
  2. A two-dimensional presentation of data.
    1. A matrix or grid of data arranged in rows and columns.
      • 1997, Chris Horrocks, Introducing Foucault, page 69 (Totem Books, Icon Books; ISBN 1840460865)
        I’m using mathesis — a universal science of measurement and order …
        And there is also taxinomia a principle of classification and ordered tabulation.
        Knowledge replaced universal resemblance with finite differences. History was arrested and turned into tables …
        Western reason had entered the age of judgement.
    2. A collection of arithmetic calculations arranged in a table, such as multiplications in a multiplication table.
      The children were practising multiplication tables.‎
      Don’t you know your tables?‎
      Here is a table of natural logarithms.‎
    3. (computing, chiefly databases) A lookup table, most often a set of vectors.
    4. (sports)  A visual representation of a classification of teams or individuals based on their success over a predetermined period.
      • 2011 April 10, Alistair Magowan, “Aston Villa 1-0 Newcastle”, in BBC Sport:
        On this evidence they will certainly face tougher tests, as a depleted Newcastle side seemed to bask in the relative security of being ninth in the table.
  3. (music)  The top of a stringed instrument, particularly a member of the violin family: the side of the instrument against which the strings vibrate.
  4. (backgammon)  One half of a backgammon board, which is divided into the inner and outer table.

Synonyms

Hypernyms

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Look at pages starting with table.

Related terms

Related terms

Coordinate terms

Translations

Verb

table ‎(third-person singular simple present tables, present participle tabling, simple past and past participle tabled)

  1. To put on a table.
    • 1833 Thomas Carlyle, letter to his Mother, The Correspondence of Thomas Carlyle and Ralph Waldo Emerson
      [A]fter some clatter offered us a rent of five pounds for the right to shoot here, and even tabled the cash that moment, and would not pocket it again.
  2. (Britain, Canada, New Zealand) To propose for discussion (from to put on the table).
    The legislature tabled the amendment, so they will start discussing it now.
  3. (US) To hold back to a later time; to postpone.
    The legislature tabled the amendment, so they will not be discussing it until later.
    The motion was tabled, ensuring that it would not be taken up until a later date.
  4. To tabulate; to put into a table.
    to table fines
  5. To delineate, as on a table; to represent, as in a picture.
    • Francis Bacon
      tabled and pictured in the chambers of meditation
  6. To supply with food; to feed.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Milton to this entry?)
  7. (carpentry) To insert, as one piece of timber into another, by alternate scores or projections from the middle, to prevent slipping; to scarf.
  8. To enter upon the docket.
    to table charges against someone
  9. (nautical) To make board hems in the skirts and bottoms of (sails) in order to strengthen them in the part attached to the bolt-rope.

Related terms

Translations

See also

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: although · knowledge · hath · #535: table · daughter · makes · laws

Anagrams

French

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /tabl/

Etymology 1

From Old French table, from Latin tabula ‎(“tablet”).

Noun

table f ‎(plural tables)

  1. table (item of furniture)
  2. flat surface atop various objects
  3. flat part of a cut or carved object
  4. (music) table of a stringed instrument
  5. matrix or grid of data arranged in rows and columns
  6. systematic list of content
Related terms

Etymology 2

From the verb tabler.

Verb

table

  1. first-person singular present indicative of tabler
  2. third-person singular present indicative of tabler
  3. first-person singular present subjunctive of tabler
  4. third-person singular present subjunctive of tabler
  5. second-person singular imperative of tabler

Anagrams

Middle English

Etymology

Old French, from Latin tabula

Noun

table (plural tables)

  1. table

Descendants

Old French

Etymology

From Latin tabula.

Noun

table f ‎(oblique plural tables, nominative singular table, nominative plural tables)

  1. table (furniture)

Descendants

See also

Romanian

Etymology

From Greek τάβλι ‎(távli).

Noun

table f pl ‎(plural only)

  1. backgammon

Etymology

From Middle English table, tabel, tabil, tabul, from Old English tabele, tabul, tablu, tabule, tabula ‎(“board”); also as tæfl, tæfel, an early Germanic borrowing of Latin tabula ‎(“tablet, board, plank, chart”). The sense of "piece of furniture with the flat top and legs" is from Old French table, of same Latin origin; Old English used bord instead for this meaning (see board).

Pronunciation

  • (Canada, UK, US) enPR: tā'bəl, IPA(key): /ˈteɪbəl/
  • Rhymes: -eɪbəl

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