monocle

[mon-uh-kuh l]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR monocle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an eyeglass for one eye.

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

Related Words for monocle

pince-nez, eyeglass, lorgnon

Examples from the Web for monocle

Contemporary Examples of 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

Historical Examples of monocle

"Mr. Bellmer's an overgrown cherub with a monocle," I laughed.
The Bacillus of Beauty
Harriet Stark
His monocle was in his eye, and it shone on Kenyon as he entered.
A Woman Intervenes
Robert Barr
He had a monocle screwed into one eye which made him look fierce and tough.
A Yankee Flier Over Berlin
Al Avery
He had a monocle in his right eye which he kept adjusting nervously.
Secret Armies
John L. Spivak
Educated in England, where he acquired his accent and the monocle habit.
From Place to Place
Irvin S. Cobb

British Dictionary definitions for monocle

monocle

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

"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]