insulation
Americannoun
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Also called: insulant. material used to insulate a body, device, or region
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the act or process of insulating
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of insulation
Explanation
Insulation is the process of keeping heat, sound, or electricity from spreading. It's also the material used to do so. If you can hear your neighbor snoring at night, you might need better sound insulation. Your thermos of hot chocolate stays warm when it's freezing outside because the thermos provides insulation. Similarly, the insulation in an ice chest keeps your sodas and food cool at the beach, even when you're being scorched by the sun. Insulation can also refer to a state of being detached or isolated. If you stay at home and avoid TV, the internet, and phone calls, you are in a state of insulation.
Vocabulary lists containing insulation
Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie
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Physical Science - Energy - Introductory
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Physics - Introductory
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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.
"Trump appears focused on preserving this truce and using the time to build insulation against dependence on China for key inputs," Ryan Hass of the Brookings Institution said.
From Barron's • May 8, 2026
I spent hours with Dad in our garage grease pit bleeding brakes, in our attic installing insulation, in the furnace room adjusting burners.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026
The Lib Dems set out a series of relatively small spending proposals in their manifesto, like £100m on an emergency insulation programme, and £50m to hire an extra 2,000 pupil support assistants for schools.
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
The BBC has spoken to homeowners across the UK over many years who said their properties have been ruined by poorly installed insulation under ECO4.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
When the cold was extreme, even the excellent insulation of the tent could not keep it out, and we lay in our bags as close to the stove as possible.
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.
