entrance
1 Americannoun
-
entrances
plural
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an act of entering, as into a place or upon new duties.
- Antonyms:
- exit
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a point or place of entering; an opening or passage for entering, as a doorway.
- Antonyms:
- exit
-
the right, privilege, or permission to enter; admission.
People improperly dressed will be refused entrance to the theater.
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Theater. the moment or place in the script at which an actor comes on the stage.
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Music.
-
the point in a musical score at which a particular voice or instrument joins the ensemble.
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the way in which this is done.
a sloppy entrance.
-
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a manner, means, or style of entering a room, group, etc.; way of coming into view.
She mimicked Joan's entrance.
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Nautical. the immersed portion of a hull forward of the middle body (opposed to run).
noun
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the act or an instance of entering; entry
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a place for entering, such as a door or gate
-
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the power, liberty, or right of entering; admission
-
( as modifier )
an entrance fee
-
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the coming of an actor or other performer onto a stage
verb
-
to fill with wonder and delight; enchant
-
to put into a trance; hypnotize
Synonym Usage
Entrance, admittance, admission refer to the possibility of entering a place or a group. Entrance may refer to either possibility: Entrance is by way of the side door; entrance into a card game. Admittance refers more to place and suggests entrance that may be permitted or denied: to gain admittance to a building; no admittance. Admission refers more to special groups and suggests entrance by payment, by formal or special permission, privilege, and the like: admission to a concert, a game, to candidacy, the bar, to society.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
entrancesimple
-
entrancessimple
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have entrancedperfect
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has entrancedperfect
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am entrancingprogressive
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are entrancingprogressive
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is entrancingprogressive
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have been entrancingperfect progressive
-
has been entrancingperfect progressive
Past
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entrancedsimple
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had entrancedperfect
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was entrancingprogressive
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were entrancingprogressive
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had been entrancingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of entrance1
First recorded in 1525–50; from Middle French; see enter, -ance
Origin of entrance2
Explanation
As a noun, entrance means an act of entering or something that provides a way to enter something. You can make a grand entrance when you arrive at a party, as long as you can actually find the entrance. Entrance has two pronunciations. If you put the accent on the first syllable, the word is a noun meaning the act of entering or the way into something ("an entrance to the building"). If the accent is on the second syllable, then entrance is a verb meaning "to enchant, charm, or enamor" — "You will be entranced by the movie; the scenery looks so real you will swear it is growing in the theater."
Vocabulary lists containing entrance
Beowulf vocabulary
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Gene Wilder (1933-2016) Tribute List
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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.
See Examples For:
A newly erected sign at the entrance to the village reads: “I am Spartacus. You are Spartacus. We are Spartacus.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
The people using the cave instead chose grasses growing relatively close to its entrance.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 15, 2026
Around the time the campaign began, the national medical entrance exam was scrapped after a question-paper leak.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Lake Park Bistro — Lake Park Bistro has the kind of delightfully old-school French restaurant feel that starts at the grand entrance and continues with white tablecloths and waiters in spiffy uniforms.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026
I had planted myself there for the clear view of the double doors at the front entrance and was rewarded when he burst out of the building with a bunch of other boys.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
The move from Block comes as many financial technology and payment companies are eyeing entrances into banking.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Soon, local men were standing guard in shifts at the two entrances into town, aiming their weapons at trucks laden with freshly picked avocados and cars packed with farmhands as they demanded identity documents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
Hamed was one of British boxing's biggest stars during the 1990s, combining an entertaining fighting style with elaborate ring entrances and a larger-than-life character.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
Near brightly lit cave entrances, several kinds of algae and plants grew in the water.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
Curious students from other classes had now gathered around the two entrances to the room, drawn by the crash and clatter.
From "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier
But innovation will remain a hard sell so long as users remain entranced by the big blur, where art becomes media, media becomes content, and content becomes time tossed into the wind.
From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2026
How Scotland, and other parts of the world, became entranced by the fairytale only for the reality of sport's essential brutality to hit them square between the eyes at Celtic Park on denouement day.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
Two men are entranced by her, a suave doctor played by David Niven and Richard Conte’s impulsive race-car driver.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 28, 2026
The poetry is so-so, but programmers are entranced by its coding skill.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 24, 2026
Whose shining, polished surface had entranced Pearl with her own reflection.
From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
Brazil now need major surgery - starting with the area of the field where they used to be so strong, so creative, so entrancing - the midfield.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
The lyric, "I'll cry my eyes violet", refers to the star's famously entrancing eyes; and the line "what could you possibly get for the girl who has everything" namechecks one of her films.
From BBC ● Mar. 31, 2026
It is not necessary to know the backstory of the picture and its title to find it entrancing, but its history is a rich one.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026
What’s most entrancing, however, is Poots, who brings to bear the fullness of her being without ever tipping over into “showcase” acting.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 9, 2026
They made such an entrancing sight that Tyrion almost waddled right into the steaming pile of dung the elephant had left to mark its passage.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
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.
