cellar
Americannoun
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a room, or set of rooms, for the storage of food, fuel, etc., wholly or partly underground and usually beneath a building.
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an underground room or story.
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Sports. the lowest position in a group ranked in order of games won.
The team was in the cellar for most of the season.
verb (used with object)
noun
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an underground room, rooms, or storey of a building, usually used for storage Compare basement
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a place where wine is stored
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a stock of bottled wines
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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cellarsimple
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cellarssimple
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have cellaredperfect
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has cellaredperfect
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am cellaringprogressive
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are cellaringprogressive
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is cellaringprogressive
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have been cellaringperfect progressive
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has been cellaringperfect progressive
Past
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cellaredsimple
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had cellaredperfect
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was cellaringprogressive
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were cellaringprogressive
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had been cellaringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of cellar
1175–1225; Middle English celer < Anglo-French < Latin cellārium storeroom, equivalent to cell ( a ) cell + -ārium -ary; later respelling to reflect Latin form; see -er 2, -ar 2
Explanation
A cellar is a basic, unfinished basement. In a very old house, the cellar might have stone walls and a rough dirt floor. Your cellar might basically be a basement, a place you keep your tools and do your laundry. Some cellars have specific purposes, including a storm cellar, where you take cover during a tornado or other storm, and a root cellar, where you store potatoes and other root vegetables during the cold months of the year. This kind of cellar comes the closest to the meaning of the Latin root, cellarium: "pantry or storeroom."
Vocabulary lists containing cellar
Salt to the Sea
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"Marionettes, Inc." by Ray Bradbury
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"After Apple-Picking" by Robert Frost
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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.
The house has a wood-paneled office with a coffered ceiling and a brick-floored wine cellar with an antique wine press.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 4, 2026
How many plunge pools are in the palatial Tierra Santa Healing House, which just opened in the cellar of the Faena New York hotel.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
Luxe amenities include a gym, wine cellar, and bar.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 8, 2026
The playbook was the same: The pair asked for a tour of the restaurant’s wine cellar.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 31, 2026
Aunt Kitty smiled and nodded politely, but the moment Mrs. Maroney disappeared, she raced for the cellar door and was down the stairs in a flash.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
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.
