sill
1 Americannoun
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a horizontal timber, block, or the like serving as a foundation of a wall, house, etc.
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the horizontal piece or member beneath a window, door, or other opening.
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Geology. a tabular body of intrusive igneous rock, ordinarily between beds of sedimentary rocks or layers of volcanic ejecta.
noun
noun
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a shelf at the bottom of a window inside a room
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a horizontal piece along the outside lower member of a window, that throws water clear of the wall below
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the lower horizontal member of a window or door frame
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a continuous horizontal member placed on top of a foundation wall in order to carry a timber framework
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a flat usually horizontal mass of igneous rock, situated between two layers of older sedimentary rock, that was formed by an intrusion of magma
Other Word Forms
- sill-like adjective
- undersill noun
Etymology
Origin of sill
before 900; Middle English sille, Old English syl, sylle; cognate with Low German süll, Old Norse syll; akin to German Schwelle sill
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.
"I looked out the window and the water was lapping at the bottom of the window sill," he recalled.
From BBC
The Red Sea was initially connected from the north to the Mediterranean through a shallow sill.
From Science Daily
Often it seems, this cosy spot would appear to be a window sill, as ladybirds can easily squeeze through the small gaps around loose fitting windows.
From BBC
Political analysts cautioned that the race is sill wide open, with one expert declining to speculate during the “embryonic” stages as the field takes shape.
From Los Angeles Times
This rigid material must be custom cut and fit tight between the floor joists, subfloor and sill plate.
From Seattle Times
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.
