aerie
or aer·y
[ air-ee, eer-ee ]
/ ˈɛər i, ˈɪər i /
noun, plural aer·ies.
the nest of a bird of prey, as an eagle or a hawk.
a lofty nest of any large bird.
a house, fortress, or the like, located high on a hill or mountain.
an apartment or office on a high floor in a high-rise building: a penthouse aerie with a spectacular view.
Obsolete. the brood in a nest, especially of a bird of prey.
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RELATED WORDS
Nearby words
- aerial tramway,
- aerial yam,
- aerialist,
- aeriality,
- aerially,
- aeriferous,
- aerification,
- aeriform,
- aerify,
- aero
Also eyrie, eyr·y.
Origin of aerie
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for aerie
aerie
/ (ˈɛərɪ, ˈɪərɪ) /
noun
a variant spelling (esp US) of eyrie
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
aerie
"eagle's nest," 1580s (attested in Anglo-Latin from early 13c.), from Old French aire "nest," Medieval Latin area "nest of a bird of prey" (12c.), perhaps from Latin area "level ground, garden bed" [Littré], though some doubt this [Klein]. Another theory connects it to atrium. Formerly misspelled eyrie (1660s) on the mistaken assumption that it derived from Middle English ey "egg."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper