paneling

[ pan-l-ing ]

/ ˈpæn l ɪŋ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR paneling ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

wood or other material made into panels.

a surface of panels, especially of decorative wood or woodlike panels.

panels collectively.

Nearby words

panel thief, panel truck, panel van, panelboard, paneled, paneling, panelist, panelized, panelling, panellist, panencephalitis

Also especially British, pan·el·ling.

Origin of paneling

First recorded in 1815–25; panel + -ing¹

Definition for paneling (2 of 2)

panel

[ pan-l ]

/ ˈpæn l /

noun

a distinct portion, section, or division of a wall, wainscot, ceiling, door, shutter, fence, etc., especially of any surface sunk below or raised above the general level or enclosed by a frame or border.

a comparatively thin, flat piece of wood or the like, as a large piece of plywood.

a group of persons gathered to conduct a public discussion, judge a contest, serve as advisers, be players on a radio or television game, or the like: a panel of political scientists meeting to discuss foreign policy.

a public discussion by such a group.

Law.

a list of persons summoned for service as jurors.
the body of persons composing a jury.
(in Scotland) the person or persons arraigned for trial.

a mount for or a surface or section of a machine containing the controls and dials.

Electricity. a switchboard or control board, or a division of a switchboard or control board containing a set of related cords, jacks, relays, etc.

a broad strip of material set vertically in or on a dress, skirt, etc.

Painting.

a flat piece of wood of varying kinds on which a picture is painted.
a picture painted on such a piece of wood.

(in Britain) a list of approved or cooperating doctors available to patients under a health insurance program.

Aeronautics. a lateral subdivision of an airfoil with internal girder construction.

Engineering, Building Trades.

the space on the chord of a truss between any two adjacent joints made by principal web members with the chord.
the space within the web of a truss between any two such joints and a corresponding pair of joints or a single joint on an opposite chord.

the section between the two bands on the spine of a bound book.

Mining. an area of a coal seam separated for mining purposes from adjacent areas by extra thick masses or ribs of coal.

a pad placed under a saddle.

a pad, cloth, or the like, serving as a saddle.

a pane, as in a window.

a slip of parchment.

a photograph much longer in one dimension than the other.

verb (used with object), pan·eled, pan·el·ing or (especially British) pan·elled, pan·el·ling.

to arrange in or furnish with a panel or panels.

to ornament with a panel or panels.

to set in a frame as a panel.

to select (a jury).

Scots Law. to bring to trial.

Origin of panel

1250–1300; Middle English < Old French panel a piece (of anything), diminutive of pan piece of cloth or the like. See pane, -elle

Related forms

re·pan·el, verb (used with object), re·pan·eled, re·pan·el·ing or (especially British) re·pan·elled, re·pan·el·ling.sub·pan·el, nounun·pan·eled, adjectiveun·pan·elled, adjective

Can be confused

board committee council panel trust

Usage note

See collective noun.

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

Examples from the Web for paneling

After pulling over the car, the paneling of which was packed with drugs of all kinds, the cops tow it to the station.
12 Juiciest Bits from Keith Richards' Memoir|The Daily Beast|October 27, 2010|DAILY BEAST
In taking a "secret" cupboard out of a closet, there was discovered some paneling that had been plastered and papered over.
Remodeled Farmhouses|Mary H. Northend
At the right of it is a china closet with mullioned glass door, and on the left two narrower closets are found in the paneling.
Remodeled Farmhouses|Mary H. Northend
There are similar scroll-pattern stair ends and paneling under the stairs.
The Colonial Architecture of Philadelphia|Frank Cousins

No sculptures or inscribed slabs, the paneling of the walls of palaces, appear to exist beneath them, as in those of Nineveh.
Museum of Antiquity|L. W. Yaggy
In the sacristy, too, and the robing room, there were screens and paneling with richly detailed carvings.
The Spell of the Hawaiian Islands and the Philippines|Isabel Anderson

British Dictionary definitions for paneling

panel

/ (ˈpænəl) /

noun

a flat section of a wall, door, etc

any distinct section or component of something formed from a sheet of material, esp of a car body, the spine of a book, etc

a piece of material inserted in a skirt, dress, etc

a group of persons selected to act as a team in a quiz, to judge a contest, to discuss a topic before an audience, etc
(as modifier)a panel game

a public discussion by such a groupa panel on public health

law

a list of persons summoned for jury service
the persons on a specific jury

Scots law a person indicted or accused of crime after appearing in court

a thin board used as a surface or backing for an oil painting
a painting done on such a surface

any picture with a length much greater than its breadth

See instrument panel

(formerly, in Britain)

a list of patients insured under the National Health Insurance Scheme
a list of medical practitioners within a given area available for consultation by these patients

on the panel British informal receiving sickness benefit, esp from the government

verb -els, -elling or -elled or US -els, -eling or -eled (tr)

to furnish or decorate with panels

to divide into panels

law

to empanel (a jury)
(in Scotland) to bring (a person) to trial; indict

Word Origin for panel

C13: from Old French: portion, from pan piece of cloth, from Latin pannus; see pane 1

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