rose window

American

noun

a circular window decorated with tracery symmetrical about the center.

rose window British

noun

Also called: wheel window. rosette. a circular window, esp one that has ornamental tracery radiating from the centre to form a symmetrical roselike pattern

"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

Etymology

Origin of rose window

First recorded in 1765–75

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.

Zamacona grills hand-cut steaks Santa Maria-style over a red-oak live fire, from behind stained-glass rose window panels.

From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2025

For years, nobody has been allowed to peek behind the ornate stone walls and intricate rose window of the Catholic Apostolic Church in Albury.

From BBC • Apr. 26, 2025

The fugitives entered and left the attic through a rose window, usually under the cover of darkness.

From Reuters • May 4, 2022

At the entrance to the cathedral, in the north tower near the blue and white rose window, work is underway to ensure the masonry is secure.

From New York Times • Aug. 30, 2018

The tracery of the rose window for the front of the cathedral was carefully cut according to the plans.

From "Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction" by David Macaulay

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023