foyer
Americannoun
plural
foyers-
the lobby of a theater, hotel, or apartment house.
-
a vestibule or entrance hall in a house or apartment.
noun
-
a hall, lobby, or anteroom, used for reception and as a meeting place, as in a hotel, theatre, cinema, etc
-
(in Britain) a centre providing accommodation and employment training, etc. for homeless young people
Etymology
Origin of foyer
1855–60; < French: fireplace, hearth (originally a room to which theater audiences went for warmth between the acts) < Gallo-Latin *focārium, equivalent to Latin foc ( us ) hearth ( cf. focus) + -ārium -arium
Explanation
A foyer is a large entrance, like the foyer of a building that you enter before you reach the elevators. Sometimes a foyer is also called a "lobby." Foyer originally was a term in French that referred to the room where actors waited when they were not on stage. Today, a foyer is a large entrance to a building or home. The bigger and fancier a mansion, office or apartment building is, the bigger and more ornate the foyer will likely be. After all, the foyer will be the first room that visitors see when entering.
Vocabulary lists containing foyer
The Catcher in the Rye
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10 Words that Inspired Taylor Swift
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "F"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“Public rooms on the main level include a living room, grand entrance foyer, formal dining room, wood paneled library, and areas perfect for staff or home office,” reveals the listing.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 17, 2026
Walking into that long, blue-hued foyer with the marble floors, built-in planters and the spiral staircase that winds you through the home, left and right, mimics the feeling of descending these same hills.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026
An AFP reporter in Moscow saw two vans of Russia's Investigative Committee parked in a yard outside the offices and staff stood inside the entrance foyer.
From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026
In the foyer, beneath the Byzantine-style archway, he swept.
From Slate • Mar. 25, 2026
Dad stayed in the foyer, explaining our situation.
From "The Season of Styx Malone" by Kekla Magoon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
