room

[ room, room ]

noun

1. a portion of space within a building or other structure, separated by walls or partitions from other parts:

   a dining room.

2. rooms, lodgings or quarters, as in a house or building.
3. the persons present in a room:

   The whole room laughed.

4. space or extent of space occupied by or available for something:

   The desk takes up too much room.

5. opportunity or scope for something:

   room for improvement; room for doubt.

   Synonyms: allowance, margin, provision

6. status or a station in life considered as a place:

   He fought for room at the top.

7. capacity:

   Her brain had no room for trivia.

8. Mining. a working area cut between pillars.

verb (used without object)

1. to occupy a room or rooms; lodge.

room

/ ruːm; rʊm /

noun

1. space or extent, esp unoccupied or unobstructed space for a particular purpose

   is there room to pass?

2. an area within a building enclosed by a floor, a ceiling, and walls or partitions

   sitting room

   dining room

3. functioning as singular or plural the people present in a room

   the whole room was laughing

4. foll by for opportunity or scope

   room for manoeuvre

5. plural a part of a house, hotel, etc, that is rented out as separate accommodation; lodgings

   she got rooms in town

6. a euphemistic word for lavatory

verb

1. intr to occupy or share a room or lodging

   where does he room?

Derived Forms

• ˈroomer, noun

Other Words From

• under·room noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of room¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English roum(e), Old English rūm; cognate with Dutch ruim, German Raum

Word History and Origins

Origin of room¹

Old English rūm ; related to Gothic, Old High German rūm

Idioms and Phrases

In addition to the idiom beginning with room , also see not enough room to swing a cat ; take up space (room) .

Example Sentences

The pair had worked together on a 2006 musical production of “The Notebook” and she said Teal was “the kind of guy who could light up a room without trying.”

From Los Angeles Times

“I loved his voice and I loved the songs and I loved that he used to fly around the room like a crazy person,” Smith says.

From Los Angeles Times

"Our voices are often shut out of the COP29 negotiating rooms. Which means we will get outcomes that don’t reflect the lived realities of women in climate-hit areas," she said.

From BBC

Even though this processing has come a long way, there is still room for increasing for example image contrast and resolution.

From Science Daily

In addition to considering a single-family home, the research also examined how well the technology would work in the lobby of a small hotel, a medium-size office building, and hospital patient rooms.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• accommodation
• apartment
• cabin
• cave
• chamber
• cubicle
• den
• lodging
• office
• suite