umbrella

[uhm-brel-uh]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR umbrella ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a light, small, portable, usually circular cover for protection from rain or sun, consisting of a fabric held on a collapsible frame of thin ribs radiating from the top of a carrying stick or handle.

the saucer- or bowl-shaped, gelatinous body of a jellyfish; bell.

something that covers or protects from above, as military aircraft safeguarding surface forces: an air umbrella.

any general kind of protection: a price umbrella.

something, as an organization or policy, that covers or encompasses a number of groups or elements.

adjective

shaped like or intended to perform the function of an umbrella.

having the quality or function of covering or applying simultaneously to a number of similar items, elements, or groups: an umbrella organization; umbrella coverage in an insurance policy.

Origin of umbrella

1600–10; 1965–70 for def 7; < Italian ombrella, earlier variant of ombrello < Late Latin umbrella, alteration (with influence of Latin umbra shade) of Latin umbella sunshade. See umbel

Related formsum·brel·la·less, adjectiveum·brel·la·like, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for umbrella

shade, canopy, sunshade, brolly, gamp, shelter, screen, guard, parasol, bumbershoot, protect

Examples from the Web for umbrella

Contemporary Examples of umbrella

And that means they also fall under the umbrella of programs most likely to get the axe when state and federal budgets are tight.
How to Solve the Policing Crisis
Keli Goff
January 5, 2015
The program—weirdly—is now under the umbrella of ABC News, and is suffering from flat ratings and an aging demographic.
The Bloodiest Media Coups of 2014
Lloyd Grove
December 22, 2014
The law professor, Benny Tai, urged the students to “retreat and take the spirit of the Umbrella Movement into the community.”
The Monuments Men of Occupy Hong Kong
Brendon Hong
December 4, 2014
Think of them as the Monuments Men and Women of the Umbrella Movement.
The Monuments Men of Occupy Hong Kong
Brendon Hong
December 4, 2014
From Carnations to Umbrella, the history and importance of names people give to nonviolent movements.
You Say You Want to Name a Revolution?
Jack DuVall
October 5, 2014

Historical Examples of umbrella

And, hanging it over his umbrella, he stalked moodily onward.
Punchinello, Vol. 1. No. 20, August 13, 1870
Various
President Cleveland held an umbrella over his head as he took the oath.
United States Presidents' Inaugural Speeches
Various
Bring him to me in the ramada, Jose, and be sure you bring the umbrella.
The Penance of Magdalena and Other Tales of the California Missions
J. Smeaton Chase
The stalwart man was buttoned up in a dark overcoat, and carried an umbrella.
The Secret Agent
Joseph Conrad
Without hat or umbrella, my companion set off, chatting as we went.
In the Heart of Vosges
Matilda Betham-Edwards

British Dictionary definitions for umbrella

umbrella

noun

a portable device used for protection against rain, snow, etc, and consisting of a light canopy supported on a collapsible metal frame mounted on a central rod

the flattened cone-shaped contractile body of a jellyfish or other medusa

a protective shield or screen, esp of aircraft or gunfire

anything that has the effect of a protective screen or cover

any system or agency that provides centralized organization or general cover for a group of related companies, organizations, etcdance umbrella
(as modifier)an umbrella fund; umbrella group

Derived Formsumbrella-like, adjective

Word Origin for umbrella

C17: from Italian ombrella, diminutive of ombra shade; see umbra

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

Word Origin and History for umbrella

c.1600, first attested in Donne's letters, from Italian ombrello, from Late Latin umbrella, altered (by influence of umbra) from Latin umbella "sunshade, parasol," diminutive of umbra "shade, shadow" (see umbrage).

A sunshade in the Mediterranean, a shelter from the rain in England; in late 17c. usage, usually as an Oriental or African symbol of dignity. Said to have been used by women in England from c.1700; the first rain-umbrella carried by a man there was traditionally c.1760, by Jonas Hathaway, noted traveler and philanthropist. Figurative sense of "authority, unifying quality" (usually in a phrase such as under the umbrella of) is recorded from 1948.