Meanings
plural salt cellars · alternative saltcellar · alternative salt-cellar
- A small open container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table.
And she had no love for the sea specially, regarding all winds as nuisances excepting such as had been raised by her own efforts, and thinking that salt from a saltcellar was more convenient than that brought to her on the breezes.
c. 1867, Anthony Trollope, chapter XXVII, in The Claverings1 more example
Soon afterwards, Biddy, Joe, and I, had a cold dinner together; but we dined in the best parlour, not in the old kitchen, and Joe was so exceedingly particular what he did with his knife and fork and the saltcellar and what not, that there was great restraint upon us.
1860 December – 1861 August, Charles Dickens, chapter XVI, in Great Expectations […], volume II, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published October 1861, →OCLC, pages 259–260 - UKSynonym of salt shaker (“a closed container with perforated lid for sprinkling salt”).
Synonyms: salt shaker, cellar, salt
Synonyms & antonyms
nounSynonym of salt shaker (“a closed container with perforated lid for sprinkling salt”).
Origin
- Latinsāl“salt”
- Latinsalārius“relating to salt”
- Middle Frenchsalier
- Middle Englishsaler
- Englishsalt cellar
From salt + cellar, from 15th Century Middle English saler, from Middle French salier, from Latin salārius (“relating to salt”), from Latin sāl (“salt”). Modified based on originally unrelated English cellar.
More words from Middle English, Middle French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans soutstrooier
- soutstrooiercontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Basque gatzontzi
- gatzontzicontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Bulgarian солница, солник
- солница (solnica)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
- солник (solnik)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Catalan saler
- salercontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Chinese Mandarin 鹽瓶 /盐瓶
- 鹽瓶 /盐瓶 (yán píng)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Czech solnička, slánka
- solničkacontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
- slánkacontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Dutch zoutvat
- zoutvatcontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Finnish suolasirotin
- suolasirotincontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
French salière
- salièrecontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
German Salzfässchen, Salzstreuer
- Salzfässchencontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
- Salzstreuercontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Greek αλατιέρα
- αλατιέρα (alatiéra)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Hungarian sótartó
- sótartócontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Italian saliera
- salieracontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Japanese 塩入れ
- 塩入れ (shioire)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Korean 소금통, 소금병
- 소금통 (sogeumtong)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
- 소금병 (sogeumbyeong)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Persian نمکدان
- نمکدان (namakdân)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Polish solniczka
- solniczkacontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Portuguese saleiro
- saleirocontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Romanian solniță, sărăriță
- solnițăcontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
- sărărițăcontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Russian соло́нка
- соло́нка (solónka)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Slovak soľnička
- soľničkacontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Spanish salero
- salerocontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Swedish saltkar
- saltkarcontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Turkish tuzluk
- tuzlukcontainer holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Ukrainian сільни́чка
- сільни́чка (silʹnýčka)container holding salt for use in the kitchen or on a dining table
Cite this entry
salt cellar. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/salt%20cellar
“salt cellar.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/salt%20cellar. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “salt cellar,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/salt%20cellar.
Source: salt cellar on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.