liminal space
Americannoun
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a state or place characterized by being transitional or intermediate in some way: In the film, Venice is a liminal space where the real and imaginary meet.
Motels are such liminal spaces—everyone there is either coming or going.
In the film, Venice is a liminal space where the real and imaginary meet.
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Informal. any location that is unsettling, uncanny, or dreamlike.
The classroom when school is out for the summer is a liminal space.
Etymology
Origin of liminal space
First recorded in 1970–75
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.
“Backrooms,” the No. 1 movie in the country currently, is a horror movie that takes place in a seemingly endless liminal space that articulates itself as generic strip mall or office spaces.
From Salon ● Jun. 8, 2026
The definition for what constitutes a liminal space has been debated, but most are sparsely populated and vaguely retro.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026
Since I’d been finding myself in various Chinatowns both as a liminal space and a state of mind, I told them I’d claim it, even though it was just as mysterious to me.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2026
All three sisters found themselves single, and the music inhabits that strange liminal space where you're relieved to be free, but not quite ready to move on.
From BBC ● Dec. 13, 2025
He was, in a sense, living in the liminal space of Halloween.
From Salon ● Oct. 29, 2017
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.
