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dwelling

[dwel-ing]
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noun
  1. a building or place of shelter to live in; place of residence; abode; home.
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Origin of dwelling

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at dwell, -ing1
Related formsmul·ti·dwell·ing, noun, adjective

Synonyms

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See house.

dwell

[dwel]
verb (used without object), dwelt or dwelled, dwell·ing.
  1. to live or stay as a permanent resident; reside.
  2. to live or continue in a given condition or state: to dwell in happiness.
  3. to linger over, emphasize, or ponder in thought, speech, or writing (often followed by on or upon): to dwell on a particular point in an argument.
  4. (of a moving tool or machine part) to be motionless for a certain interval during operation.
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noun
  1. Machinery.
    1. a flat or cylindrical area on a cam for maintaining a follower in a certain position during part of a cycle.
    2. a period in a cycle in the operation of a machine or engine during which a given part remains motionless.
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Origin of dwell

before 900; Middle English dwellen to lead astray, stun, abide, Old English dwellan to lead or go astray, hinder; cognate with Old Norse dvelja
Related formsdwell·er, nounout·dwell, verb (used with object), out·dwelt or out·dwelled, out·dwell·ing.pre·dwell, verb (used without object)
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

residencehabitatabodedumphousehabitationdomicilehauntquarterspaddenlodgingcastleestablishmentresidencydigscommorancy

Examples from the Web for dwelling

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Were not her poor friends the more sorely tried that she was dwelling at ease?

    Weighed and Wanting

    George MacDonald

  • Your dwelling is in those parts, and so their thoughts turned to you as their leader.

    The White Company

    Arthur Conan Doyle

  • Close to the dwelling, the rest of the little company was awaiting them.

    Casanova's Homecoming

    Arthur Schnitzler

  • When they had gone some forty miles into the mountains, he saw a dwelling, fair and clean.

  • Sure enough, he missed his way, and came to the dwelling of Laotzse.

British Dictionary definitions for dwelling

dwelling

noun
  1. formal, literary a place of residence
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dwell

verb dwells, dwelling, dwelt (dwɛlt) or dwelled (intr)
  1. formal, literary to live as a permanent resident
  2. to live (in a specified state)to dwell in poverty
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noun
  1. a regular pause in the operation of a machine
  2. a flat or constant-radius portion on a linear or rotary cam enabling the cam follower to remain static for a brief time
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Derived Formsdweller, noun

Word Origin

Old English dwellan to seduce, get lost; related to Old Saxon bidwellian to prevent, Old Norse dvelja, Old High German twellen to prevent
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

Word Origin and History for dwelling

n.

"place of residence," mid-14c., verbal noun from dwell (v.).

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dwell

v.

Old English dwellan "to mislead, deceive," originally "to make a fool of, lead astray," from Proto-Germanic *dwaljanan (cf. Old Norse dvöl "delay," dvali "sleep;" Middle Dutch dwellen "to stun, make giddy, perplex;" Old High German twellen "to hinder, delay;" Danish dvale "trance, stupor," dvaelbær "narcotic berry," source of Middle English dwale "nightshade"), from PIE *dhwel-, from root *dheu- (1) "dust, cloud, vapor, smoke" (and related notions of "defective perception or wits").

Related to Old English gedweola "error, heresy, madness." Sense shifted in Middle English through "hinder, delay," to "linger" (c.1200, as still in phrase to dwell upon), to "make a home" (mid-13c.). Related: Dwelled; dwelt; dwells.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper