split-level

American  

[split-lev-uhl] / ˈsplɪtˈlɛv əl /

adjective

1. noting a house having a room or rooms that are somewhat above or below adjacent rooms, with the floor levels usually differing by approximately half a story.

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noun

1. a split-level house.

split-level British  

adjective

1. (of a house, room, etc) having the floor level of one part about half a storey above or below the floor level of an adjoining part

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Etymology

Origin of split-level

First recorded in 1945–50

Compare meaning

How does split-level compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• split-level vs. bi-level

Example Sentences

The simple, sparsely elegant split-level apartment creates the right authenticity for Alex Ashe’s textured 16mm cinematography.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 6, 2025

We lived in a beige-and-brown, two-story split-level house that my parents bought in 1980, the year I was born.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 21, 2025

All of the five shops it is hoping to open before Christmas are expected to be quite different - some single-level, other split-level and an out-of-town retail park reportedly on the cards.

From BBC • Oct. 27, 2023

What you get for $1.1 million: An 1888 Queen Anne Revival in Versailles, Ky.; a Craftsman bungalow in Denton, Texas; or a split-level home in New Hope, Pa.

From New York Times • Jul. 15, 2023

He wished he lived in a split-level or a house with a finished basement.

From "Eleanor & Park" by Rainbow Rowell