Attic
['ætɪk]
Definition
(noun.) (architecture) a low wall at the top of the entablature; hides the roof.
(noun.) informal terms for a human head.
(noun.) the dialect of Ancient Greek spoken and written in Attica and Athens and Ionia.
(adj.) of or relating to Attica or its inhabitants or to the dialect spoken in Athens in classical times; 'Attic Greek' .
Editor: Orville--From WordNet
Definition
(a.) Of or pertaining to Attica, in Greece, or to Athens, its principal city; marked by such qualities as were characteristic of the Athenians; classical; refined.
(a.) A low story above the main order or orders of a facade, in the classical styles; -- a term introduced in the 17th century. Hence:
(a.) A room or rooms behind that part of the exterior; all the rooms immediately below the roof.
(a.) An Athenian; an Athenian author.
Checked by Estes
Synonyms and Synonymous
a. Chaste, classic, classical, pure, correct, refined, elegant, polished, in good taste.
n. [1]. Athenian, Athenian author.[2]. Garret, loft, cockloft, upper story.
Checked by Cordelia
Definition
adj. pertaining to Attica or to Athens: chaste refined elegant like the Athenians.—v.t. Att′icise to make conformable to the language or idiom of Attica.—v.i. to use the idioms of the Athenians: to side with the Athenians to affect Attic or Greek style or manners.—n. At′ticism.—Attic salt wit of a dry delicate and refined quality.
n. (archit.) a low story above the cornice that terminates the main part of an elevation: a room in the roof of a house.
Edited by Jeffrey
Unserious Contents or Definition
To dream that you are in an attic, denotes that you are entertaining hopes which will fail of materialization. For a young woman to dream that she is sleeping in an attic, foretells that she will fail to find contentment in her present occupation.
Edited by Ben
Examples
- The attic was no pleasant place: I believe he did not know how unpleasant it was, or he never would have locked me in with so little ceremony. Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
- There she was, doing all this in a quiet motherly manner as if she were living in Mrs. Blinder's attic with Tom and Emma again. Charles Dickens. Bleak House.
- He then led the way inside, and went over the whole building from basement to attic. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Return of Sherlock Holmes.
- The sun had been shining brightly all day on the roof of my attic, and the room was warm. Charles Dickens. Great Expectations.
- In fact, this hallway, with its conglomerate contents, may well be considered a scientific attic. Frank Lewis Dyer. Edison, His Life and Inventions.
- On March 10, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell, standing in a little attic at No. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- When my father took over the Horsham property, he, at my request, made a careful examination of the attic, which had been always locked up. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
- She grumbles so much about the stairs at Heston; and the girl is to have that sloping attic over your room and mamma's. Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell. North and South.
- Another burst of attic sentiment blazed forth. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
- And the language of the court and administration was Attic Greek. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- To the head-bandage was pinned a slip of paper: it bore in pencil these mocking words-- The nun of the attic bequeaths to Lucy Snowe her wardrobe. Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
- This birthplace of Edison remains the plain, substantial little brick house it was originally: one-storied, with rooms finished on the attic floor. Frank Lewis Dyer. Edison, His Life and Inventions.
- She soon learned to think with respect of her own little attic at Mansfield Park, in _that_ house reckoned too small for anybody's comfort. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.
- I suppose, sister, you will put the child in the little white attic, near the old nurseries. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.
- I have been talking to the Rector, and for the last few moments I have been watching you, my Attic nightingale. Fergus Hume. The Island of Fantasy.
- I could not bear to have her ten miles from me; and as for Pulvis Lodge, the attics are dreadful. Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice.
- I followed still, up a very narrow staircase to the attics, and thence by a ladder and through a trap-door to the roof of the hall. Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre.
- This house is so beautifully fitted up, even to the very attics, that it would be quite a pity to leave it, said Fanny. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
Typist: Robinson