Illustration of samovar
- samovar 1
samovar
noun
sam·o·var ˈsa-mə-ˌvär 
1
: an urn with a spigot at its base used especially in Russia to boil water for tea
2
: an urn similar to a Russian samovar with a device for heating the contents
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Old-fashioned Chekhovian naturalism is banished to create a samovar-free zone. 
David Benedict, Variety, 8 July 2022 Authentic Russian balalaika melodies set the mood as hostesses serve a beverage from the samovar -- the Bolshoi Golden Troika, (a mix of coffee, vodka and liqueurs) created by the house of Seagram. Chris Dwyer, CNN, 11 Aug. 2021 There will be no samovar, there will be no parasols. New York Times, 22 June 2021 The effect of her behavior now is to drive a wedge between the two brothers, based on the flimsiest of reasons: i.e., who went home with the samovar. Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2021 The effect of her behavior now is to drive a wedge between the two brothers, based on the flimsiest of reasons: i.e., who went home with the samovar. Amy Dickinson, oregonlive, 26 Mar. 2021 The effect of her behavior now is to drive a wedge between the two brothers, based on the flimsiest of reasons: i.e., who went home with the samovar. Amy Dickinson, Detroit Free Press, 26 Mar. 2021 Tanya gave me, on behalf of everyone at the hospital, a Russian wooden spoon and a small samovar. Yair Reisner, Time, 24 Apr. 2020 Home is the usual Russian affair—chaise longue: check; samovar: check—but the women’s clothes, and their language, are jarringly modern. Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, 29 July 2019 See More
David Benedict, Variety, 8 July 2022 Authentic Russian balalaika melodies set the mood as hostesses serve a beverage from the samovar -- the Bolshoi Golden Troika, (a mix of coffee, vodka and liqueurs) created by the house of Seagram. Chris Dwyer, CNN, 11 Aug. 2021 There will be no samovar, there will be no parasols. New York Times, 22 June 2021 The effect of her behavior now is to drive a wedge between the two brothers, based on the flimsiest of reasons: i.e., who went home with the samovar. Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2021 The effect of her behavior now is to drive a wedge between the two brothers, based on the flimsiest of reasons: i.e., who went home with the samovar. Amy Dickinson, oregonlive, 26 Mar. 2021 The effect of her behavior now is to drive a wedge between the two brothers, based on the flimsiest of reasons: i.e., who went home with the samovar. Amy Dickinson, Detroit Free Press, 26 Mar. 2021 Tanya gave me, on behalf of everyone at the hospital, a Russian wooden spoon and a small samovar. Yair Reisner, Time, 24 Apr. 2020 Home is the usual Russian affair—chaise longue: check; samovar: check—but the women’s clothes, and their language, are jarringly modern. Alexandra Schwartz, The New Yorker, 29 July 2019 See More Word History
Etymology
Russian, from samo- self + varit' to boil
First Known Use
1830, in the meaning defined at sense 1