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mansard

[man-sahrd, -serd]
noun
  1. Also called mansard roof. a hip roof, each face of which has a steeper lower part and a shallower upper part.Compare French roof.
  2. the story under such a roof.
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Origin of mansard

1725–35; < French mansarde, named after N. F. Mansart

Mansart

[mahn-sar; English man-sahrt, -sert]
noun
  1. Jules Har·douin [zhyl ar-dwan] /ʒül arˈdwɛ̃/, Jules Hardouin, 1646–1708, French architect: chief architectural director for Louis XIV.
  2. his granduncle(Ni·co·las) Fran·çois [nee-kaw-lah frahn-swa] /ni kɔˈlɑ frɑ̃ˈswa/, 1598–1666, French architect.
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Also Man·sard [mahn-sar; English man-sahrd, ‐serd] /mɑ̃ˈsar; English ˈmæn sɑrd, ‐sərd/.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for mansard

Historical Examples

  • The architect was Mansard, for whom the Mansard roof, known in America, is named.

    A Journey Through France in War Time

    Joseph G. Butler, Jr.

  • It was two stories high, crowned with a French mansard roof.

    The Kentucky Ranger

    Edward T. Curnick

  • The house was pulled down and the chteau erected, after the plans of Mansard.

    Princes and Poisoners

    Frantz Funck-Brentano

  • Under the roof, in two mansard attics, were the nests for the servants.

    Les Misrables

    Victor Hugo

  • He may have spied upon us from the port, through the barriers, and even to our mansard.

    Lazarre

    Mary Hartwell Catherwood

British Dictionary definitions for mansard

mansard

noun
  1. Also called: mansard roof a roof having two slopes on both sides and both ends, the lower slopes being steeper than the upperCompare gambrel roof
  2. an attic having such a roof
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Word Origin

C18: from French mansarde, after François Mansart

Mansart

noun
  1. François (frɑ̃swa). 1598–1666, French architect, who established the classical style in French architecture
  2. his great-nephew, Jules Hardouin (ʒyl ardwɛ̃). 1646–1708, French architect and town planner, who completed the Palace of Versailles
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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

Word Origin and History for mansard

1734, from French mansarde, short for toit à la mansarde, a corrupt spelling, named for French architect Nicholas François Mansart (1598-1666), who made use of them.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper