Tabletop

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A flat, often horizontal surface designed for various tasks or activities, which also serves as a platform for games and can be found in both domestic and commercial settings
2. A sturdy, level structure utilized for holding objects or engaged in activities, that also indicates a format for games played on its surface
3. A level, flat surface typically used for placing items or conducting activities, which also denotes a type of game format played on its upper side

Etymology: "Tabletop" is a plain compound, built from "table" and "top," with the sense of the upper surface of a table. It needs no hidden story: the first element is the ordinary word for a flat piece of furniture, and the second names the surface on which things are placed. Joined together, the two words came to mean that exposed upper face, and the "top" element is what gives the term its physical sense of a surface you can see and reach. The word then picked up a second meaning that has nothing to do with furniture. A tabletop game is one played on a flat surface, usually with pieces, boards, dice, and printed rules, rather than on a screen. Tabletop role-playing games, where players sit around a table and describe a shared fictional world, are the best-known example. The shift from a physical surface to a style of play happened by simple extension: the game takes its name from the place where it is played.

Synonyms: surface, top