garret

¹

[ gar-it ]

noun

1. an attic, usually a small, wretched one.

garret

²

[ gar-it ]

noun

, Masonry.

1. gallet.

garret

/ ˈɡærɪt /

noun

1. another word for attic

Other Words From

• garret·ed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of garret¹

1300–50; Middle English garite watchtower < Old French garite, guerite watchtower, derivative of garir, guarir to defend, protect; garrison

Origin of garret²

First recorded in 1835–45; of uncertain origin

Word History and Origins

Origin of garret¹

C14: from Old French garite watchtower, from garir to protect, of Germanic origin; see wary

Example Sentences

Anything and everything you wanted to know about Bloomsbury, its predecessors and its casualties — with obligatory forays into the Riviera and Parisian garrets.

From New York Times

In central Paris, a thousand vulnerable people living in top-floor, garret apartments died because the city’s famous heat-absorbing zinc roofs turned their uninsulated homes into ovens.

From Los Angeles Times

A triangle conjures up the narrow garret in which Harriet Jacobs, the author of “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl,” hid for seven years to avoid capture.

From New York Times

The romantic image of the writer in the garret doesn't do justice to the tedious reality of churning out words, one after another.

From Salon

Our little garret had a great view, but confronting six flights of stairs after walking around Paris all day wasn’t fun.

From Seattle Times