monocle

[ mon-uh-kuh l ]

/ ˈmɒn ə kəl /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR monocle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an eyeglass for one eye.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

monochromatic aberration, monochromatism, monochromatophil, monochromator, monochrome, monocle, monoclinal, monocline, monoclinic, monoclinous, monoclonal

Origin of monocle

1855–60; < French, noun use of adj.: one-eyed < Late Latin monoculus, equivalent to mon- mon- + oculus eye

Related formsmon·o·cled, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for monocle

Her work has also appeared in The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, Monocle magazine (UK) and The Globe and Mail.
What the Chinese Heard|Carolynne Wheeler|November 18, 2009|DAILY BEAST
The Mate picked him up out of the scuppers and we dried his clothes over the boilers, but the monocle was never seen again.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 156, Feb. 26, 1919|Various
Yet he appeared not to see, for his fingers fumbled on his waistcoat for the monocle—fumbled—vaguely, helplessly.
The Right of Way, Complete|Gilbert Parker
Walderhurst fixed his monocle firmly to conceal the fact that he was verging upon a cynical grin.
Emily Fox-Seton|Frances Hodgson Burnett

Under the friendly but heavy stroke the monocle shot from Charley's eye the length of the string.
The Right of Way, Complete|Gilbert Parker
Saying this, he tapped Jim playfully with his monocle, and the latter reluctantly smiled.
Baseball Joe, Captain of the Team|Lester Chadwick

British Dictionary definitions for monocle

monocle

/ (ˈmɒnəkəl) /

noun

a lens for correcting defective vision of one eye, held in position by the facial muscles

Derived Formsmonocled, adjective

Word Origin for monocle

C19: from French, from Late Latin monoculus one-eyed, from mono- + oculus eye

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 monocle

monocle

"single eyeglass," 1886, from French monocle, noun use of adjective monocle "one-eyed, blind in one eye" (13c.), from Late Latin monoculus "one-eyed," from Greek monos "single, alone" (see mono-) + Latin oculus "eye" (see eye (n.)).

That this, a hybrid, a Gallicism, and a word with no obvious meaning to the Englishman who hears it for the first time, should have ousted the entirely satisfactory eyeglass is a melancholy illustration of the popular taste in language. [Fowler]