apartment

[ uh-pahrt-muh nt ]

/ əˈpɑrt mənt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR apartment ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a room or a group of related rooms, among similar sets in one building, designed for use as a dwelling.

a building containing or made up of such rooms.

any separated room or group of rooms in a house or other dwelling: We heard cries from an apartment at the back of the house.

apartments, British. a set of rooms used as a dwelling by one person or one family.

Nearby words

aparri, apart, apart from, apartheid, aparthotel, apartment, apartment hotel, apartment house, apartmentize, apast, apastron

Origin of apartment

1635–45; < French appartement < Italian appartamento, equivalent to apparta(re) to separate, divide (verbal derivative of a parte apart, to one side) + -mento -ment

Related forms

a·part·men·tal

[uh-pahrt-men-tl] /ə pɑrtˈmɛn tl/, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for apartment

He was born in an apartment above the grocery store owned by his immigrant parents in South Jamaica, Queens.
Mario Cuomo, a Frustrating Hero to Democrats, Is Dead at 82|Eleanor Clift|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“Bodegas, private residences, apartment buildings, you name it,” the investigator says.
Exclusive: Inside a Cop-Killer’s Final Hours|Michael Daly|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At 24, I slipped on the ice outside of my Michigan apartment.
You’re Never ‘Cured’ of an Eating Disorder|Carrie Arnold|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Magazines are the only thing in my apartment that qualify as clutter.
I’m a Digital Hoarder|Lizzie Crocker|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST

And there are a few nice things buried beneath the rubble that I could use in my apartment.
I’m a Digital Hoarder|Lizzie Crocker|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Descending toward the left, we approach one of the most singularly beautiful groups of stalactites in this apartment.
Bancroft's Tourist's Guide Yosemite|A.L. Bancroft
The lads followed Mr. Welfare into the hall, and after closing and barring the door he led the way to an apartment on the left.
In the Days of Washington|William Murray Graydon
Without the formality of knocking, they entered an apartment on the fourth floor where a woman stood washing dishes.
Abe and Mawruss|Montague Glass
Augustus also placed another statue of him in his bed-chamber, and used to kiss it as often as he entered the apartment.
The Lives Of The Twelve Caesars, Complete|C. Suetonius Tranquillus
One glance at the apartment gave me a general idea of its character.
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. II, No. X., March 1851|Various

British Dictionary definitions for apartment

apartment

/ (əˈpɑːtmənt) /

noun

(often plural) any room in a building, usually one of several forming a suite, esp one that is spacious and well furnished and used as living accommodation, offices, etc

another name (esp US and Canadian) for flat 2 (def. 1)
(as modifier)apartment building; apartment house

Word Origin for apartment

C17: from French appartement, from Italian appartamento, from appartare to set on one side, separate

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