The word teapoy comes from the Hindi 'tin' 'pai', meaning 'three leg' or tripod. In British India tripod tables and small pillar tables in general were known as teapoys. Furniture makers copied the teapoy's form directly from the European candlestand. People used teapoys mainly as stands for candles and candle shades, although illustrations show that they were sometimes also used as a hookah stand. In Britain, the term teapoy was mistakenly linked with tea. The British began to use it to describe a small pillar table incorporating a caddy or chest fitted for the storage and consumption of tea.