window

A1 Topic:House & Home

US /ˈwɪn.doʊ/ UK /ˈwɪndəʊ/ See IPA manual

Freq #970

Meanings

1

noun
An opening in a wall or vehicle, usually filled with glass, that lets in light and air.

She opened the window to let some air in.
2

noun
The glass front of a shop where goods are displayed.

The new coat in the shop window caught my eye.
3

noun
A limited period of time when something is possible.

There is only a short window to apply for the grant.
4

noun
Something that lets you see or understand something else.

His diary offers a window into life a century ago.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

glass

Word family

Forms windowedwindowingwindows

Derived forms dormer-windowloop-windowluthern-windowone-windowunwindowunwindowedwindow-breakerwindow-downwindow-dresswindow-dressingwindow-killwindow-seat

Related forms eye wind

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 .

*h₂weh₁- Proto-Indo-European wyndowe Middle English vindauga Old Norse

View etymology graph ->

External links

# window

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈwɪn.doʊ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈwɪndəʊ/
**Frequency rank:** 970

## Meanings
1. An opening in a wall or vehicle, usually filled with glass, that lets in light and air.
2. The glass front of a shop where goods are displayed.
3. A limited period of time when something is possible.
4. Something that lets you see or understand something else.

## Examples
- She opened the window to let some air in.
- The new coat in the shop window caught my eye.
- There is only a short window to apply for the grant.
- His diary offers a window into life a century ago.

## Synonyms
- glass

## Derived Forms
- dormer-window
- loop-window
- luthern-window
- one-window
- unwindow
- unwindowed
- window-breaker
- window-down
- window-dress
- window-dressing
- window-kill
- window-seat

## Related Forms
- eye
- wind

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *h₂weh₁-
- Root: wyndowe
- Root: vindauga

## 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 .

## AI Etymology
Window is 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 . In present-day use, it can mean a opening in a wall or vehicle, usually filled with glass, that lets in light and air, or the glass front of a shop where goods are displayed.

## Topics
- House & Home

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