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drop-leaf

drop-leaf

7.8
A hinged part of a table you lift to make more space
  • noun
  • /ˈdrɒp liːf/
translation icon : hoja abatible
  • The drop-leaf table can easily be expanded on both sides to accommodate more guests.
  • drop-leaf table

Examples

  • For small apartments, a drop-leaf kitchen table is a practical choice that maximizes surface area.

  • You see bookshelves, a drop-leaf desk by the window, a fern in a brass-studded pot, and a fire.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • Of course it was an heirloom; it had belonged to her mother's mother, a burnished mahogany drop-leaf built in York in 1844.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • But it was wartime, and the pay was so poor that Mother had to sell off some of our fine old furniture: the applewood safe, the drop-leaf table from the hall, Grandmother's massive walnut four-poster; the rooms in the house grew larger.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • When not in use, the drop-leaf can be folded down to save space in the dining room.

Synonyms

leaf
vsdrop-leaf
33 8.1

A hinged or removable flat section like a table extension

is a table extension panel that is raised and supported by a bracket

Surface Forms

drop-leaf singular
drop-leaves plural

Morphology

drop-leaf = drop + leaf (semi-transparent) = drop + leaf

The components 'drop' and 'leaf' are clear, but the specific meaning of a hinged table section is not immediately obvious from the parts.

Etymology

Drop-leaf is made of drop and leaf, where leaf once meant a flat board or a page and drop means 'to let fall' or 'hang down'. So a drop-leaf is a board that you can lift to make a table bigger and drop down to hang and save space.