How to pronounce Carafe

What is Carafe?

An open glass bottle with a flared lip and no stopper, used to bring wine or water to the table; restaurants often sell house wine by the carafe.

A carafe is a glass container with a flared lip, used for serving liquids at the table, mainly wine, water and coffee. It has no stopper, which is the usual way to tell it from a decanter. In American English the glass or thermal pot of a coffee maker is also called a carafe.

The word traveled a long way. Dictionaries trace English carafe to French carafe, from Italian caraffa, from Spanish garrafa, and perhaps back to an Arabic word for a drinking vessel or dipper. The first English records date from the 1780s.

On a wine list, a carafe is a way of selling wine without the bottle. House wine is often offered by the carafe or half carafe, and the word also names the amount served. In France, asking for a carafe d'eau gets you tap water at no charge instead of bottled water. In Greek tavernas, draught wine is normally served in carafes.

Carafe, syllable by syllable

Why Carafe is hard to say

Carafe came into English from French in the 1780s, and it kept the French habit of leaning on the last syllable. Most two-syllable English nouns are stressed on the first, so the eye wants KAIR-uf. Other French loans in wine keep the late stress in the same way: Merlot and sommelier are both said with the weight at the end.

The final e is the second trap. In French spelling a plain e at the end of a word is silent, and only an accented é is said "ay". That is the difference between carafe and café, and between rose and rosé. The same rule explains cuvée, where the accent tells you to sound the last vowel.

Other accepted pronunciations

These are also correct, and Vinolingo scores them as correct:

• kuh-RAHF — Established English form.

Tips for saying it

How to use carafe in a sentence

In a restaurant, carafe usually comes up when you order house wine or water. Say what you want in it and the size: a carafe, or a half carafe if the list offers one. Both kuh-RAF and the broader kuh-RAHF are established English forms, so use whichever comes naturally. In France the word is said with two clear a vowels and a French r.

• “Could we have a carafe of the house red, please?” Stress on the second syllable: kuh-RAF.
• “A half carafe of white is enough for the two of us.”

Names often confused with Carafe

• Decanter (dih-KAN-ter): A similar serving vessel that usually has a stopper and is used to pour wine off its sediment or let it take air.
• Sommelier (soh-muh-LYAY): The wine professional who may pour your wine into a carafe or decanter at the table; another French loan with the stress at the end.
• Cuvée (koo-VAY): Shows the other half of the rule: the accented é is sounded, while the plain final e of carafe is silent.
• Vin de Pays (VAN duh pay-EE): A French category of everyday regional wine, the kind of simple wine often poured by the carafe.

Questions about pronouncing Carafe

How do you pronounce carafe?

Carafe is pronounced kuh-RAF, with two syllables, a weak first syllable and the stress on the second. It rhymes with giraffe. The final e is silent. A second established English form, kuh-RAHF, uses the broader a of "father" and is also accepted.

Is the e silent in carafe?

Yes. The word ends on the f sound. The final e carries no accent mark, so it is not sounded in French or in English. It is often heard with an extra "ay" at the end by analogy with café, where the accented é is what gives that word its second syllable.

Is it kuh-RAF or kuh-RAHF?

Both are standard. Merriam-Webster and Collins list kuh-RAF first and kuh-RAHF as a second form. Cambridge gives only kuh-RAF for British English. The stress is on the second syllable either way.

What is the difference between a carafe and a decanter?

Both are glass vessels for serving wine. A decanter usually comes with a stopper and is used to separate an older wine from its sediment or to expose a wine to air. A carafe has no stopper and is a simple serving bottle, used for house wine, water and other drinks.

How do the French say carafe?

In French, carafe has two even syllables, both with a clear open a, a French r made at the back of the mouth, and a silent final e. It sounds close to ka-RAF, without the weak uh that English uses in the first syllable.

Sources: Merriam-Webster: carafe, Cambridge Dictionary: carafe, Collins English Dictionary: carafe, Wikipedia: Carafe. Last reviewed 2026-10-10.