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Synonyms

glasshouse

American  
[glas-hous, glahs-] / ˈglæsˌhaʊs, ˈglɑs- /

noun

  • glasshouses
    plural
  1. a glassworks.

  2. Chiefly British. a green-house.

  3. British Informal. a military prison.


glasshouse British  
/ ˈɡlɑːsˌhaʊs /

noun

  1. a glass building, esp a greenhouse, used for growing plants in protected or controlled conditions

  2. obsolete a military detention centre

  3. another word for glassworks

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of glasshouse

First recorded in 1350–1400, glasshouse is from Middle English glas hous. See glass, house

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:

“There’s something out there that thinks a corpse flower smells like heaven,” said Marc Hachadourian, director of glasshouse horticulture at the New York Botanical Garden, which hosted a corpse flower bloom last year.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 10, 2026

They added this yeast to bee diets and tested it over three months in controlled glasshouse experiments.

From Science Daily Mar. 27, 2026

“Santa Maria will be one of the last growing areas in California before everything probably goes glasshouse or indoor in places like Detroit or Chicago or New Jersey,” Harrison said.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 26, 2022

Fiona Inches, glasshouse supervisor for the Edinburgh Biomes Initiative, said the work was vital because the current condition of the buildings meant the plants were vulnerable.

From BBC Sep. 24, 2021

They have already begun to build a glasshouse a little way from our fort, with a large furnace for glassmaking.

From "Blood on the River" by Elisa Carbone

The Victorian glasshouses nurture fattening peaches, while in the main garden beyond, a tower of water bursts up into the sky—the highest powered fountain in England.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 11, 2026

After growing in glasshouses, harvesting and polishing the rice grains, they found that the vitamin B1 content was increased in rice grains from these lines.

From Science Daily Apr. 11, 2024

Crafted in Lancashire, England, where the company, Hartley Botanic, has been manufacturing glasshouses since 1938, the Patio is available in 15 colors. $4,400 at hartley-botanic.com.

From Seattle Times Nov. 20, 2023

Dr Sarah Schiffling, a supply chain expert from the Hanken School in Helsinki, told us the season for growing tomatoes in UK glasshouses is about nine months a year.

From BBC Mar. 2, 2023

It encompassed not only the vast archives, but the university, too, together with laboratories and glasshouses, medical theaters and music rooms, and even a celestial observatory.

From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor

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