loft

[ lawft, loft ]

noun

1. a room, storage area, or the like within a sloping roof; attic; garret.
2. a gallery or upper level in a church, hall, etc., designed for a special purpose:

   a choir loft.

3. a hayloft.
4. an upper story of a business building, warehouse, or factory, typically consisting of open, unpartitioned floor area.
5. such an upper story converted or adapted to any of various uses, as quarters for living, studios for artists or dancers, exhibition galleries, or theater space.
6. Also called loft bed. a balcony or platform built over a living area and used especially for sleeping.
7. Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. an attic.
8. Golf.
   1. the slope of the face of the head of a club backward from the vertical, tending to drive the ball upward.
   2. the act of lofting.
   3. a lofting stroke.
9. the resiliency of fabric or yarn, especially wool.
10. the thickness of a fabric or of insulation used in a garment, as a down-filled jacket.

verb (used with object)

1. to hit or throw aloft:

   He lofted a fly ball into center field.

2. Golf.
   1. to slant the face of (a club).
   2. to hit (a golf ball) into the air or over an obstacle.
   3. to clear (an obstacle) in this manner.
3. to store in a loft.
4. Shipbuilding. to form or describe (the lines of a hull) at full size, as in a mold loft; lay off.
5. Archaic. to provide (a house, barn, etc.) with a loft.

verb (used without object)

1. to hit or throw something aloft, especially a ball.
2. to go high into the air when hit, as a ball.

loft

/ lɒft /

noun

1. the space inside a roof
2. a gallery, esp one for the choir in a church
3. a room over a stable used to store hay
4. an upper storey of a warehouse or factory, esp when converted into living space
5. a raised house or coop in which pigeons are kept
6. sport
   1. (in golf) the angle from the vertical made by the club face to give elevation to a ball
   2. elevation imparted to a ball
   3. a lofting stroke or shot

verb

1. sport to strike or kick (a ball) high in the air
2. to store or place in a loft
3. to lay out a full-scale working drawing of (the lines of a vessel's hull)

Other Words From

• loftless adjective
• under·loft noun
• well-lofted adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of loft¹

before 1000; Middle English lofte (noun), late Old English loft < Old Norse lopt upper chamber or region, the air, sky. See lift

Word History and Origins

Origin of loft¹

Late Old English, from Old Norse lopt air, ceiling; compare Old Danish and Old High German loft (German Luft air)

Example Sentences

Look for a pillow with a low loft, which puts the top closer to the mattress, and is filled with soft support from down or feathers.

From Popular-Science

If you’re one of the lucky few who naturally sleep this way, look for a pillow with medium firmness and loft to elevate the neck slightly.

From Popular-Science

The actual loft of the face changes as you go from the top to the bottom of the club, which helps negate the ill-effects of hitting the ball too early or late in your stroke.

From Popular-Science

The neighborhood boasts plenty of lofts, cafes, and trendy shops and restaurants.

From No Straight News

Electric forces also loft dust into Earth’s atmosphere, Grossman notes.

From Science News

South Korean activists are already planning to loft them over the Demilitarized Zone in balloons.

From The Daily Beast

In testimony, witnesses described a lifestyle that included “a downtown loft and several luxury cars.”

From The Daily Beast

We kept going up until we found ourselves in a vast Sharkarama, a huge loft with fake sharks hung from hooks everywhere.

From The Daily Beast

A few weeks ago I was invited to a Soho loft for a board game day.

From The Daily Beast

The Arsenal has been converted to “Manhattan style, loft apartments,” the vast majority still unsold.

From The Daily Beast

She should not show panic because of the mysterious noise in the loft of the abandoned Carter house.

From Project Gutenberg

Frank climbs up the tall ladder to the loft, which is the second story of the barn, and throws down the hay.

From Project Gutenberg

I sawed off the upper four feet carefully, and stowed the remainder back in the loft.

From Project Gutenberg

I had rather sleep upon a pallet in a loft, by myself, than in the handsomest room in the house, with her for a room-mate.

From Project Gutenberg

So alarmed were we for our safety that we crossed that night into a third valley and slept in the loft of a horse-barn.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• apartment
• studio