ROOM

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does room mean? 

• ROOM (noun)
  The noun ROOM has 4 senses:

1. an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling

2. space for movement

3. opportunity for

4. the people who are present in a room

  Familiarity information: ROOM used as a noun is uncommon.

• ROOM (verb)
  The verb ROOM has 1 sense:

1. live and take one's meals at or in

  Familiarity information: ROOM used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ROOM (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Context example:

the rooms were very small but they had a nice view

Hypernyms ("room" is a kind of...):

area (a part of a structure having some specific characteristic or function)

Meronyms (parts of "room"):

floor; flooring (the inside lower horizontal surface (as of a room, hallway, tent, or other structure))

wall (an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure)

ceiling (the overhead upper surface of a covered space)

room light (light that provides general illumination for a room)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "room"):

poolroom (a room with pool tables where pool is played)

sewing room (a room set aside for sewing)

scullery (a small room (in large old British houses) next to the kitchen; where kitchen utensils are cleaned and kept and other rough household jobs are done)

scriptorium (a room in a monastery that is set aside for writing or copying manuscripts)

rotunda (a large circular room)

rec room; recreation room (a room equipped for informal entertaining)

reception room (a room for receiving and entertaining visitors (as in a private house or hotel))

reading room (a room set aside for reading)

rathole (a small dirty uncomfortable room)

presence chamber (room in which a monarch or other great person receives guests, assemblies, etc.)

shipping room (a room where goods are packaged and shipped)

hall; manor hall (the large room of a manor or castle)

lounge; waiting area; waiting room (a room (as in a hotel or airport) with seating where people can wait)

locker room (a room (as at an athletic facility or workplace) where you can change clothes and which contains lockers for the temporary storage of your clothing and personal possessions)

front room; living-room; living room; parlor; parlour; sitting room (a room in a private house or establishment where people can sit and talk and relax)

library (a room where books are kept)

kitchen (a room equipped for preparing meals)

hospital room (a room in a hospital for the care of patients)

hall (a large room for gatherings or entertainment)

guardroom (a room used by soldiers on guard)

solarium; sun lounge; sun parlor; sun parlour; sun porch; sunporch; sunroom (a room enclosed largely with glass and affording exposure to the sun)

workroom (room where work is done)

war room (a room where strategic decisions are made (especially for military or political campaigns))

walk-in (a small room large enough to admit entrance)

sacristy; vestry (a room in a church where sacred vessels and vestments are kept or meetings are held)

torture chamber (a room in which torture is inflicted)

bathroom; can; john; lav; lavatory; privy; toilet (a room or building equipped with one or more toilets)

test room; testing room (a room in which tests are conducted)

television room; tv room (a room set aside for viewing television)

surgery (a room where a doctor or dentist can be consulted)

antechamber; anteroom; entrance hall; foyer; hall; lobby; vestibule (a large entrance or reception room or area)

study (a room used for reading and writing and studying)

storage room; storeroom; stowage (a room in which things are stored)

steam bath; steam room; vapor bath; vapour bath (a room that can be filled with steam in which people bathe; 'vapour bath' is a British term)

squad room (a room in a police station where members of the force assemble for roll call and duty assignments)

squad room (a room in a barracks where soldiers are billeted)

smoking room (room in a hotel or club set apart for smokers)

sickroom (a room to which a sick person is confined)

sick berth; sickbay ((nautical) a room for the treatment of the sick or injured (as on a ship))

shower room (a room with several showers)

boardroom; council chamber (a room where a committee meets (such as the board of directors of a company))

closet (a small private room for study or prayer)

cloakroom; coatroom (a room where coats and other articles can be left temporarily)

clean room; white room (a room that is virtually free of dust or bacteria; used in laboratory work and in assembly or repair of precision equipment)

classroom; schoolroom (a room in a school where lessons take place)

checkroom; left-luggage office (a room where baggage or parcels are checked)

chamber (a room where a judge transacts business)

cell; cubicle (small room in which a monk or nun lives)

cell; jail cell; prison cell (a room where a prisoner is kept)

cardroom (a room for gambling on card games)

art gallery; gallery; picture gallery (a room or series of rooms where works of art are exhibited)

billiard hall; billiard parlor; billiard parlour; billiard room; billiard saloon (a room in which billiards is played)

belfry (a room (often at the top of a tower) where bells are hung)

bedchamber; bedroom; chamber; sleeping accommodation; sleeping room (a room used primarily for sleeping)

bathroom (a room (as in a residence) containing a bathtub or shower and usually a washbasin and toilet)

bar; barroom; ginmill; saloon; taproom (a room or establishment where alcoholic drinks are served over a counter)

ballroom; dance hall; dance palace (large room used mainly for dancing)

back room (a room located in the rear of an establishment; usually accessible only to privileged groups)

anechoic chamber (a chamber having very little reverberation)

compartment (a partitioned section, chamber, or separate room within a larger enclosed area)

greenroom (a backstage room in a theater where performers rest or have visitors)

gallery (a long usually narrow room used for some specific purpose)

furnace room (a room (usually in the basement of a building) that contains a furnace for heating the building)

floor; trading floor (a large room in a exchange where the trading is done)

engine room; engineering (a room (as on a ship) in which the engine is located)

durbar (the room in the palace of a native prince of India in which audiences and receptions occur)

dressing room (a room in which you can change clothes)

door (a room that is entered via a door)

dining-room; dining room (a room used for dining)

dinette (a small area off of a kitchen that is used for dining)

clubroom (a room used for the activities of a club)

conference room (a room in which a conference can be held)

control room (a room housing control equipment (as in a recording studio))

court; courtroom (a room in which a lawcourt sits)

cubby; cubbyhole; snug; snuggery (a small secluded room)

cutting room (a room where films or tapes are edited (by cutting out unwanted parts))

darkroom (a room in which photographs are developed)

den (a room that is comfortable and secluded)

Holonyms ("room" is a part of...):

building; edifice (a structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place)

Derivation:

room (live and take one's meals at or in)

roomette (a small private compartment for one on a sleeping car)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Space for movement

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Synonyms:

elbow room; room; way

Context example:

hardly enough elbow room to turn around

Hypernyms ("room" is a kind of...):

position; spatial relation (the spatial property of a place where or way in which something is situated)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "room"):

seating; seating area; seating room; seats (an area that includes places where several people can sit)

standing room (room for passengers or spectators to stand)

breathing room; breathing space (sufficient room for easy breathing or movement)

clearance; headroom; headway (vertical space available to allow easy passage under something)

houseroom (space for accommodation in a house)

lebensraum; living space (space sought for occupation by a nation whose population is expanding)

parking (space in which vehicles can be parked)

sea room (space for maneuver at sea)

Derivation:

roomy ((of buildings and rooms) having ample space)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Opportunity for

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Context example:

room for improvement

Hypernyms ("room" is a kind of...):

chance; opportunity (a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The people who are present in a room

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Context example:

the whole room was cheering

Hypernyms ("room" is a kind of...):

assemblage; gathering (a group of persons together in one place)

• ROOM (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they room    ... he / she / it rooms   
Past simple: roomed   
Past participle: roomed   
-ing form: rooming   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Live and take one's meals at or in

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Synonyms:

board; room

Context example:

she rooms in an old boarding house

Hypernyms (to "room" is one way to...):

dwell; inhabit; live; populate (be an inhabitant of or reside in)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

room (an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling)

roomer (a tenant in someone's house)

 Context examples 

The whirl culminated in a collision with a chair, and the man and woman crashed to the floor in a wild struggling fall that extended itself across half the length of the room.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

Then they carried me in. She was bound to have me in. What else could she do? And into her sitting-room, which was the very room which I suspected.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

He stepped quickly to his state-room.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

I went back to the room, and taking a lamp, tried all the doors.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

To come into the same room with him, or to meet him at the door, was to take heart of life.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

You should wait on these aims, but you can order needed repairs if you like or paint a room a new color.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

It was twenty feet square, placed in the middle of the room.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

“I will tell you the meaning of it,” cried the lady, sweeping into the room with a proud, set face.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The blood-stains in the room and also on the stick are very slight.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Following him down the passage I was suddenly interrupted by a small woman, who stepped out from what proved to be the dining-room door.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)