facade

American  

[fuh-sahd, fa-] / fəˈsɑd, fæ- /

Or façade

noun

1. Architecture.

   1. the front of a building, especially an imposing or decorative one.

   2. any side of a building facing a public way or space and finished accordingly.

2. a superficial appearance or illusion of something.

   They managed somehow to maintain a facade of wealth.

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façade British  

/ fəˈsɑːd, fæ- /

noun

1. the face of a building, esp the main front

2. a front or outer appearance, esp a deceptive one

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Usage

What does facade mean? A facade is the front of a building or a side that faces a public area.Facade is used literally to describe a decorative, showy, or onrate piece of architecture that frames the front of a building, as in The architect who designed this building used a showy facade on it to help it stand out from nearby buildings.A facade is also a superficial appearance or an illusion, which can be literal or figurative. If a movie star wears a dark hoodie and sunglasses so they won’t be recognized by the press, they are wearing a literal facade. If that movie star acts completely different from who they actually are or puts on an alternate personality in order to trick or convince people of something, that is a figurative facade.Example: He continually lied to keep up his facade until the whole thing stumbled out of control.

Etymology

Origin of facade

First recorded in 1650–60; from French, from Upper Italian faciada, Italian facciata, equivalent to facci(a) face + -ata -ade ¹

Example Sentences

As part of the facade, Taylor started writing the name of her favourite show on a white board during a fake ice-breaking exercise, before the wall suddenly parted and revealed a Regency-era ball.

From BBC

As depicted in a finely detailed illustration by Mr. Thompson, long eaves hang over the house’s facade.

From The Wall Street Journal

I step back to study the hotel’s ornate and weathered facade.

From Literature

He decided to "create a collection entirely inspired by the building’s facade and to hold his June show there", recalled Celine Leonardi, the group’s marketing and customer experience director.

From Barron's

An AFP journalist at the scene saw the collapsed facade of a residential building and rescue workers searching the rubble for victims.

From Barron's