Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for "housing"
  • present participle of house.
Synonyms

housing

1 American  
[hou-zing] / ˈhaʊ zɪŋ /

noun

  1. any shelter, lodging, or dwelling place.

  2. houses collectively.

  3. the act of one who houses or puts under shelter.

  4. the providing of houses for a group or community.

    the housing of an influx of laborers.

  5. anything that covers or protects.

    Synonyms:
    sheath, shield, casing, covering
  6. Machinery. a fully enclosed case and support for a mechanism.

  7. Carpentry. the space made in one piece of wood, or the like, for the insertion of another.

  8. Nautical.

    1. Also called bury.  the portion of a mast below the deck.

    2. Also called bury.  the portion of a bowsprit aft of the forward part of the stem of a vessel.

    3. the doubling of an upper mast.

  9. a niche for a statue.


housing 2 American  
[hou-zing] / ˈhaʊ zɪŋ /

noun

  1. a covering of cloth for the back and flanks of a horse or other animal, for protection or ornament.

  2. housings, the trappings on a horse.


housing 1 British  
/ ˈhaʊzɪŋ /

noun

    1. houses or dwellings collectively

    2. ( as modifier )

      a housing problem

  1. the act of providing with accommodation

  2. a hole, recess, groove, or slot made in one wooden member to receive another

  3. a part designed to shelter, cover, contain, or support a component, such as a bearing, or a mechanism, such as a pump or wheel

    a bearing housing

    a motor housing

    a wheel housing

  4. another word for houseline

"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

housing 2 British  
/ ˈhaʊzɪŋ /

noun

  1. archaic (often plural) another word for trappings

"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

Etymology

Origin of housing1

First recorded in 1350–1400; house + -ing 1 ( def. )

Origin of housing2

First recorded in 1690–1700; compare earlier house, Middle English hous(e), houc(e) in same sense, from Old French houce, from unrecorded Germanic hulfti- (compare Medieval Latin hultia ), akin to Middle Dutch hulfte “cover for bow and arrow,” Middle High German hulft “covering”; -ing 1 added by association with house, housing 1

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:

Bozeman Mayor Joey Morrison, who was elected at 28 on a platform focused on affordable housing, says the rapid change has created a sharp divide between locals and people from out of state.

From BBC Jul. 18, 2026

Huntington Beach, meanwhile, has been more defiant, refusing for years to zone for thousands of new homes that the housing law had required.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 18, 2026

Europe is particularly vulnerable to extreme heat, given that its housing stock is built to retain warmth, it has dense cities, and its population is aging rapidly, according to German insurer Allianz.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 17, 2026

Rich home buyers are powering the housing market.

From MarketWatch Jul. 17, 2026

HUD’s “One Strike Guide” calls on housing agencies to “take full advantage of their authority to use stringent screening and eviction procedures.”

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training