an open receptacle for holding or displaying or serving articles or food
"The waiter balanced a silver tray filled with appetizers on his arm as he walked through the dining room."
A small, typically rectangular or round, flat, and rigid object upon which things are carried.
"The taxidermist carefully labeled the diagram showing that a tray represents the third branch of a deer's antler."
trouble; annoyance; anger
Alternative form of trey (“third branch of deer's antler”)
In plain English: A tray is a flat, shallow container with raised edges used for carrying things without spilling them.
"She placed the plates on the serving tray before bringing them to the table."
Usage: Use the noun form for any shallow container with raised edges designed to hold items like dishes or documents. The verb form describes the action of placing objects onto such a surface, while an unrelated slang meaning refers to irritation or bad luck.
to place (items) on a tray
"The spy betrayed his allies by handing over their secret plans to the enemy."
to grieve; to annoy
to betray
In plain English: To tray something means to put it on a flat surface for carrying, though this usage is rare and often confused with using an object as a base or support.
"The cat tried to tray across the floor but slipped on the wet tile."
A diminutive of the female given name Tracy
"Her nickname, Tray, was a shortened version of her full name, Tracy."
The word "tray" comes from Old English trēġ, which originally meant a wooden board or vessel. It traveled into modern usage while retaining its core meaning of a flat surface for holding items.