atrium

[ ey-tree-uhm ]

See synonyms for atrium on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural a·tri·a

[ey-tree-uh], /ˈeɪ tri ə/, a·tri·ums.

Architecture.
- Also called cavaedium. the main or central room of an ancient Roman house, open to the sky at the center and usually having a pool for the collection of rainwater.
- a courtyard, flanked or surrounded by porticoes, in front of an early or medieval Christian church.
- a skylit central court in a contemporary building or house.
Anatomy. either of the two upper chambers on each side of the heart that receive blood from the veins and in turn force it into the ventricles.

Origin of atrium

First recorded in 1570–80; from Latin (in anatomical sense, from New Latin )

Other words from atrium

a·tri·al, adjective
in·ter·a·tri·al, adjective

Words Nearby atrium

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use atrium in a sentence

Each of the five interlocking buildings feature staggered indoor oases, meandering skywalks and a glass-topped central atrium that helps naturally regulate the inner climate.
How Jin Liqun Charted an Independent Course for China's Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank | Charlie Campbell / Beijing | February 19, 2021 | Time
The lodge had floor to ceiling atrium windows and held about three dozen tables for dinner.
A closer look at the houses in our fave holiday films | Valerie Blake | December 26, 2020 | Washington Blade
According to the inspector general’s report, Goldstein said a man in the hospital’s atrium cafe “bumped his entire body against mine and told me I looked like I needed a smile and a good time.”
VA Secretary Focused on Smearing Woman Who Said She Was Sexually Assaulted in a VA Hospital, Probe Finds | by Isaac Arnsdorf | December 10, 2020 | ProPublica
Now oddly enough, if we look closely, the atrium of the Roman domus didn’t seem to have any window openings that faced the streets.
The Roman Domus (House): Architecture and Reconstruction | Dattatreya Mandal | April 8, 2020 | Realm of History
The video starts off with what is known as the atrium section of the Roman domus.
The Roman Domus (House): Architecture and Reconstruction | Dattatreya Mandal | April 8, 2020 | Realm of History

He had reassembled the weapon in a bathroom and stepped out onto a fourth-floor walkway overlooking an atrium.
Inside the Washington Navy Yard’s Building 197 During Alexis’s Rampage | Michael Daly | September 19, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
He was wounded as he and a number of comrades exchanged fire with Alexis, by one account across the atrium.
Inside the Washington Navy Yard’s Building 197 During Alexis’s Rampage | Michael Daly | September 19, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
The PBS broadcast will also be screened for free, beginning at 9:00 p.m., at the David Rubenstein atrium at Lincoln Center.
The New York Philharmonic and Credit Suisse Kick Off the 2010-11 Season with a Free Dress Rehearsal | Daily Beast Promotions | September 22, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
A perk I found appealing is the breakfast served in the central atrium underneath a dramatic glass dome.
Gal With a Suitcase | Jolie Hunt | June 5, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
The attractions at the atrium were set out fully; but the name of Ras Fendihook did not appear.
Jaffery | William J. Locke
The Italian atrium, or cavdium, acquired thus a form essentially different from the Grecian court.
History of Ancient Art | Franz von Reber
Now a vivid flash of lightning rent the leaden sky overhead and searched the dark corners of the atrium.
"Unto Caesar" | Baroness Emmuska Orczy
"Come along," she said, and they stole through the deserted house to get into the street by the atrium.
Serapis, Complete | Georg Ebers
In the centre of the atrium was the impluvium, a rectangular marble tank to catch and hold the waters from the roof.
Snnica | Vicente Blasco Ibez

British Dictionary definitions for atrium

atrium

/ (ˈeɪtrɪəm, ˈɑː-) /

nounplural atria (ˈeɪtrɪə, ˈɑː-)

the open main court of a Roman house
a central often glass-roofed hall that extends through several storeys in a building, such as a shopping centre or hotel

a court in front of an early Christian or medieval church, esp one flanked by colonnades
anatomy a cavity or chamber in the body, esp the upper chamber of each half of the heart

Origin of atrium

C17: from Latin; related to āter black, perhaps originally referring to the part of the house that was blackened by smoke from the hearth

Derived forms of atrium

atrial, adjective

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

Scientific definitions for atrium

atrium

[ ā′trē-əm ]

Plural atria atriums

A chamber of the heart that receives blood from the veins and forces it by muscular contraction into a ventricle. Mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians have two atria; fish have one.

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