window
A1Meanings
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1
noun
an opening in a wall or screen that admits light and air and through which customers can be served
The cashier took the money through the window.
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2
noun
a pane of glass in a window
the ball shattered the window
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3
noun
an opening that resembles a window in appearance or function
We could see them through a window in the trees.
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4
noun
the time period that is considered best for starting or finishing something
the expanded window will give us time to catch the thieves
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5
noun
An opening, usually covered by one or more panes of clear glass, to allow light and air from outside to enter a building or vehicle.
She opened the window to let some air in.
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6
noun
An opening, usually covered by glass, in a shop which allows people to view the shop and its products from outside; a shop window.
There is an hour or two, after the passengers have embarked, which is disquieting and fussy.[…]Passengers wander restlessly about or hurry, with futile energy, from place to place. Pushing men hustle each other at the windows of the purser's office, under pretence of expecting letters or despatching telegrams.
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7
noun
A period of time when something is available or possible; a limited opportunity.
launch window
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8
noun
Something that allows one to see through or into something
His journal provides a rare window into his otherwise obscure life.
Etymology
From Middle English wyndowe, wyndown, from Old Norse vindauga (“window”, literally “wind-eye; wind-hole”), equivalent to wind + eye. Cognate with Scots windae and windock, Faroese vindeyga, Norwegian Bokmål vindu, Norwegian Nynorsk vindauge, Danish vindue, archaic Swedish vindöga, Elfdalian windog. Displaced native Old English ēagþȳrel (literally “eye hole”) (the rare direct descendant is eyethurl (“window, pupil, etc.”)). The “windows” among early Germanic peoples were just unglazed holes (eyes) in the wall or roof that permitted wind to pass through .
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