ceil

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /sil/ UK /siːl/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to line or cover the inner roof of a room with plaster or boards

The old chapel was ceiled with dark oak panels.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to line or cover the inner... line plaster panel overlay

Word family

Forms ceiledceils

Derived forms ceiling

Related forms ceiling

Etymology

From Middle English celen ('to line the inner roof'), of uncertain origin; perhaps from Old French celer ('to conceal') from Latin celare ('to hide'), or influenced by Latin caelum ('heaven, ceiling').

celare Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# ceil

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /sil/
**IPA (UK):** /siːl/

## Meanings
1. to line or cover the inner roof of a room with plaster or boards

## Examples
- The old chapel was ceiled with dark oak panels.

## Synonyms
- line
- plaster
- panel
- overlay

## Derived Forms
- ceiling

## Related Forms
- ceiling

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: celare

## Etymology
From Middle English celen ('to line the inner roof'), of uncertain origin; perhaps from Old French celer ('to conceal') from Latin celare ('to hide'), or influenced by Latin caelum ('heaven, ceiling').

## AI Etymology
Ceil comes from Middle English celen ('to line the inner roof'), of uncertain origin; perhaps from Old French celer ('to conceal') from Latin celare ('to hide'), or influenced by Latin caelum ('heaven, ceiling'). The historical trail runs through celare in Latin. The history must be left partly open, preserving the uncertainty rather than forcing a single unsupported ancestry. Used as a verb, ceil now means "line or cover the inner roof of a room with plaster or boards", so the present definition can be read against the older forms and meanings. The same lexical family is also visible in derived forms such as ceiling and related forms such as ceiling. That uncertainty is part of the entry: the safest account is the attested form and the limited comparisons preserved with it.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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