Stemware

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈstɛm.wɛə(ɹ)/

Definitions

1. Drink vessels that possess a stem and base, used primarily for serving various beverages
2. Tableware made from glass that features a tall neck for ease of holding, crafted to enhance the experience of different drinks
3. Vessels made of glass that have a tall, slender support connecting the bowl to the base, designed for holding and drinking beverages

Etymology: Stemware is a plain compound: "stem" (the slender support between a glass's bowl and its foot) plus "-ware," meaning goods or articles of a particular kind, as in "tableware" or "glassware." The "stem" element traces back through Old English "stemn" and Proto-Germanic "stamnaz," and the same root sits behind "stem" in the sense of a plant's stalk, so the glass part is named after a plant's shoot. The "-ware" element has a longer history of its own. It comes from Old English "waru," meaning merchandise or goods, and it ultimately descends from a Proto-Germanic root meaning something like "things to be guarded or kept," the same stock that gave the English verb "ware" in the sense of "to be aware of." Over time "-ware" became a productive suffix used for collective nouns of manufactured items, so stemware is simply the category of goods made as stemmed glasses.

Synonyms: goblet, chalice, glassware