porte-cochere

or porte-co·chère

[ pawrt-koh-shair, -kuh-, pohrt- ]

noun
  1. (in historical use) a covered carriage entrance leading into a courtyard.

  2. a porch or covered area at the door of a building for sheltering persons entering and leaving vehicles: a porte-cochere for protection in wet weather.

Origin of porte-cochere

1
First recorded in 1690–1700; French: literally, “gate for coaches”

Words Nearby porte-cochere

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use porte-cochere in a sentence

  • His family lived in commodious apartments over the store, having an entrance on the side within the porte cochere.

  • A half-hour later they were riding under the porte cochere of the inn of the Black Boar.

    St. Martin's Summer | Rafael Sabatini
  • But while his elders alighted, under the porte cochere, Paul did not smile.

    On the Edge of the Arctic | Harry Lincoln Sayler
  • It must have been near morning when I was awakened by the jingling of bells, and a sleigh driving into the porte cochere.

    Unveiling a Parallel | Alice Ilgenfritz Jones and Ella Marchant
  • Windows were open, an elderly woman was hanging out clothes in the back yard, and the doctor's gig stood under the porte-cochere.

    Pollyanna | Eleanor H. Porter

British Dictionary definitions for porte-cochere

porte-cochere

/ (ˌpɔːtkɒˈʃɛə) /


noun
  1. a large covered entrance for vehicles leading into a courtyard

  2. a large roof projecting over a drive to shelter travellers entering or leaving vehicles

Origin of porte-cochere

1
C17: from French: carriage entrance, from porte gateway + coche coach

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