sill
1 Americannoun
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a horizontal timber, block, or the like serving as a foundation of a wall, house, etc.
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the horizontal piece or member beneath a window, door, or other opening.
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Geology. a tabular body of intrusive igneous rock, ordinarily between beds of sedimentary rocks or layers of volcanic ejecta.
noun
noun
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a shelf at the bottom of a window inside a room
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a horizontal piece along the outside lower member of a window, that throws water clear of the wall below
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the lower horizontal member of a window or door frame
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a continuous horizontal member placed on top of a foundation wall in order to carry a timber framework
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a flat usually horizontal mass of igneous rock, situated between two layers of older sedimentary rock, that was formed by an intrusion of magma
Other Word Forms
- sill-like adjective
- undersill noun
Etymology
Origin of sill
before 900; Middle English sille, Old English syl, sylle; cognate with Low German süll, Old Norse syll; akin to German Schwelle sill
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"I looked out the window and the water was lapping at the bottom of the window sill," he recalled.
From BBC
This rigid material must be custom cut and fit tight between the floor joists, subfloor and sill plate.
From Seattle Times
Exterior and interior halves drape over a sill to leave the window mostly unobscured.
From Seattle Times
The hearing was told Sir Bobby had lost his balance as he stood up from his chair, striking a window sill and "possibly a radiator".
From BBC
But this is the first time sill construction has been used in consecutive years.
From Seattle Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.