Trencher (tableware)

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A trencher, from the Medieval French verb "tranchier" which means "to cut" ^[1], is an individual place marker, commonly associated with Medieval dining ^[2]. This was usually a piece of stale or dry bread used as a plate or a cutting board, upon which the meat course could be cut for consumption. At the end of the meal, the trencher might be eaten with sauce, or distributed to the poor.

Often, a small plate of metal or wood was placed under the bread, and this was also known as a trencher.

A Trencherman is one devoted to eating and drinking, often to excess. A secondary use, generally archaic, is one who frequents another's table, in essence a pilferer of another's food.