dwelling
Americannoun
noun
Synonym Usage
See house.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of dwelling
Explanation
A dwelling is a home — where someone lives. Houses, apartments, and condos are all dwellings. If you know that to dwell means to live somewhere, then the meaning of dwelling won't be a surprise: it's an abode, domicile, or home. Your dwelling might be a house or an apartment. Tents, trailers, and igloos are all dwellings. Anything people live in is a dwelling. If you have no dwelling, then you have no shelter and you're probably homeless.
Vocabulary lists containing dwelling
Christmas Carol Vocab: A Lyrical Lexicon
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There's No Word Like Home
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30 GRE Words Beginning with "D"
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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.
Dwelling on the lowered, near-term growth risks missing the larger story.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 30, 2025
Dwelling on it, he added, "could be life-changing".
From BBC • Jul. 15, 2025
One in five new homes built in 2024 within California were Accessory Dwelling Units, or ADUs.
From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2025
Q: I want to add an Accessory Dwelling Unit to my backyard.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 2, 2023
He had known some hard times since I saw him last in the Corner Red Dwelling of the Palace in Erhenrang by his own fireside.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
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.
