Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A glass or metal bottle, often with a flared lip, used for serving water or wine.
  • noun A glass pot with a pouring spout, used in making coffee.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A glass water-bottle or decanter.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A glass water bottle for the table or toilet; -- called also croft.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A bottle, usually glass and with a flared lip, used for serving water, wine, or other beverages.
  • noun A glass pot with a spout for pouring, used for both serving coffee and as a receptacle during the brewing process.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a bottle with a stopper; for serving wine or water

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[French, from Italian caraffa, from Spanish garrafa, probably from Arabic g̣arrafa, dipper, cup, from g̣arafa, to ladle, scoop; see g̣rp in Semitic roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

First attested 1786, from French carafe, from Italian caraffa, probably from Arabic غرفة (ghúrfa, "cup or dipper"), from غرف (ghárafa, "to ladle").

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Examples

  • Opening the door, I remove the coffee carafe from the bottom shelf, then the filter basket from the top.

    2008 September « Becca’s Byline 2008

  • Opening the door, I remove the coffee carafe from the bottom shelf, then the filter basket from the top.

    Write On Wednesday -It’s All in the Details 2008

  • At first glance the hourglass shaped carafe, which is corseted by a wooden neck and a string of rawhide, exudes retro bohemian style.

    Coffee: The Fragrant Cup Revealed Michelle Krell Kydd 2008

  • At first glance the hourglass shaped carafe, which is corseted by a wooden neck and a string of rawhide, exudes retro bohemian style.

    Archive 2008-01-01 Michelle Krell Kydd 2008

  • The carafe was a fine one, and the emptiness of the cups, arranged invitingly along the long table, carried an unmistakable air of expectation.

    Asimov's Science Fiction 2004

  • A carafe is a coffee pot you can pour from, but there are both glass carafes and stainless steel carafes.

    WN.com - Articles related to PNG to benefit from increased coffee prices 2010

  • Traditionally decanters, essentially glass serving vessels for wine, sometimes called a carafe, were used to separate aged wines from its sediment.

    Edmonton Sun 2009

  • Traditionally decanters, essentially glass serving vessels for wine, sometimes called a carafe, were used to separate aged wines from its sediment.

    London Free Press 2009

  • “This is not to merely plug Stein in to the ‘cubist’ slot – no argument from me that artists, even those associated with movements, are individuals – but to question whether her carafe is the product of a singleton or someone, as I’d argue, as much involved in group process as, in Stein’s own words, ‘writ [ing] for myself.’”

    t=e=m=p=e=r=a=m=e=n=t : Ange Mlinko : Harriet the Blog : The Poetry Foundation 2007

  • On top of the cabinet stood a set of cognac glasses, a glass carafe with cognac and a photograph of a young woman.

    old story nathreee 2010

Comments

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  • Rhymes with giraffe.

    April 30, 2009

  • Not where I come from.

    April 30, 2009

  • How do you pronounce this, gang?

    May 2, 2009

  • Ca - raf (emphasize "ca")

    May 2, 2009

  • Interesting. 'Round these parts it's usually "cuh-RAFF."

    May 2, 2009

  • My glass is empty. May you pour, please?

    May 2, 2009

  • Caraff. Girahff.

    May 2, 2009

  • I say "cuh-RAFF" too. When I was a kid I said "CAHR-a-fey." Hee.

    May 3, 2009

  • *stares blankly into empty glass*

    May 3, 2009

  • *finally pours*

    May 4, 2009

  • Well, great! Now it's cold.

    May 5, 2009

  • *reminds dontcry that the carafe is insulated*

    May 5, 2009