residence
Americannoun
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the place, especially the house, in which a person lives or resides; dwelling; home.
Their residence is in New York City.
- Synonyms:
- domicile, habitation
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a structure serving as a dwelling or home, especially one of large proportion and superior quality.
They have a summer residence in Connecticut.
- Synonyms:
- mansion
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the act or fact of residing.
during his residence in Spain.
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the act of living or staying in a specified place while performing official duties, carrying on studies or research, awaiting a divorce, etc..
She will spend two terms in resident at Oxford University.
-
the time during which a person resides in a place.
a residence there of five years.
-
the location of the main offices or principal center of business activity of a commercial enterprise, especially a large corporation, as registered under law.
-
Chemistry. residence time.
noun
-
the place in which one resides; abode or home
-
a large imposing house; mansion
-
the fact of residing in a place or a period of residing
-
the official house of the governor of any of various countries
-
the state of being officially present
-
-
actually resident
the royal standard indicates that the Queen is in residence
-
designating a creative artist resident for a set period at a university, college, etc, whose role is to stimulate an active interest in the subject
composer in residence
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the seat of some inherent quality, characteristic, etc
Synonym Usage
See house.
Etymology
Origin of residence
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin residentia, equivalent to Latin resid(ēre) “to dwell, live in, reside” + -entia noun suffix; see origin at reside, -ence
Explanation
The house or apartment where you live is your place of residence. If you're house proud, it means you keep your residence nice and tidy. The act of living in a place is also called residence. You might take up residence in an ancient oak tree when the city threatens to cut it down, for example. The official home of a person in a position of power — like a monarch or a president — is also called a residence. The official residence of the British Prime Minister is 10 Downing Street, and the residence of the President of the United States is 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Vocabulary lists containing residence
There's No Word Like Home
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From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
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"Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Yet Congress is the one who authorized the very creation of the White House through legislation, in the Residence Act of 1790.
From Slate • Apr. 30, 2026
Art work was produced by artist Cian McLoughlin inspired by this research while he was Artist in Residence at the Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience in 2024, as well as an exhibition essay.
From Science Daily • Feb. 5, 2026
Should you visit, make a request for Residence 2.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 9, 2025
Like all Chinese residents who arrived in the U.S. before the Chinese Exclusion Act, Dock had to obtain and carry a Certificate of Residence to avoid deportation.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 9, 2025
On July 9 the House passed the Residence Bill, locating the permanent national capital on the Potomac after a ten-year residence in Philadelphia, all this decided by a vote of 32 to 29.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
