gondola

[ gon-dl-uh gon-doh-luh ]

noun

1. a long, narrow, flat-bottomed boat having a tall, ornamental stem and stern and sometimes a small cabin for passengers, rowed or poled by a single person who stands at the stern, facing forward: used especially on the canals of Venice, Italy.
2. a passenger compartment suspended beneath a balloon or airship. Compare car ¹( def 4 ).
3. an enclosed cabin suspended from an overhead cable, used to transport passengers up and down a ski slope or over scenic or treacherous terrain.
4. Also called gondola car. an open railroad freight car with low sides, for transporting bulk freight and manufactured goods.
5. a truck whose bed or trailer is a hopper, as for transporting mixed cement.
6. a freestanding structure for displaying merchandise in a retail establishment, as a supermarket.
7. a chair or couch having a gondola back.

gondola

/ ˈɡɒndələ /

noun

1. a long narrow flat-bottomed boat with a high ornamented stem and a platform at the stern where an oarsman stands and propels the boat by sculling or punting: traditionally used on the canals of Venice
2. 1. a car or cabin suspended from an airship or balloon
   2. a moving cabin suspended from a cable across a valley, etc
3. a flat-bottomed barge used on canals and rivers of the US as far west as the Mississippi
4. a low open flat-bottomed railway goods wagon
5. a set of island shelves in a self-service shop: used for displaying goods
6. a broadcasting booth built close to the roof over an ice-hockey arena, used by commentators

Word History and Origins

Origin of gondola¹

1540–50; < Italian < Venetian, probably < Medieval Greek kontoúra small boat used in coastal navigation, noun use of feminine of kóntouros short, clipped, literally, dock-tailed, equivalent to Late Greek kont ( ós ), kond ( ós ) short + Greek -ouros -tailed, adj. derivative of ourá tail

Word History and Origins

Origin of gondola¹

C16: from Italian (Venetian dialect), from Medieval Latin gondula, perhaps ultimately from Greek kondu drinking vessel

Example Sentences

Rob Kingwill and Emilé Zynobia, professional snowboarders based out of Jackson, stepped off the gondola into the cold Wyoming air, about 4,000 feet above the valley floor.

From Time

At the resort, the socially distanced lines for the gondola were dangerously compressing.

From Time

There was even an idea for aerial transport system – or a gondola – that would cross the border from San Ysidro to Tijuana dating back to 1959, according to the Journal of San Diego History.

From Voice of San Diego

While you won’t be able to pile into a gondola with randos or share nachos at the lodge, you’ll still be able to make the most of this season.

From Outside Online

In place of crowded après-ski bars and packed gondolas, you’ll see extra-long, spaced-apart lift lines, skiers in full-face coverings, and take-out lunches eaten outside.

From Outside Online

That evening in the gondola, with one old and two newer friends, is marked with a white stone in my recollection.

From Project Gutenberg

A kind of summer palace illuminated by the rays of the rising Sun opened beneath our aerial gondola.

From Project Gutenberg

We came out at a gate which opened upon the lake, and there stood a gondola with two under jailers belonging to San Michele.

From Project Gutenberg

These, too, were shut and locked, and when I ducked under the nearest gondola I realized that I was trapped.

From Project Gutenberg

Further opposition was hopeless, so I returned disconsolate to my gondola, to await the issue.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• barge
• canoe
• catamaran
• craft
• dinghy
• raft
• sailboat
• schooner
• ship
• yacht