louvre
louvre Lexical Profile
louvre Game Scores & Validity
• noun
(capitalized) A historic former royal palace and national art museum located on the Right Bank of the Seine in Paris, France, renowned as the world's largest art museum and home to iconic works such as the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo.
"During their semester in Paris, the art history students spent several afternoons studying Renaissance paintings in the Louvre."
British Each of a set of angled, overlapping horizontal slats or fin-like blades fixed in a door, window, or shutter to admit air or light while keeping out rain and direct sunshine.
"She adjusted the wooden louvres on the window to let the evening breeze circulate through the bedroom."
British A domed or turret-like structure on the roof of a medieval building with side openings designed to allow smoke to escape and fresh air to enter.
"The great hall of the medieval manor featured an ornate timber louvre high in the rafters to vent smoke from the central hearth."
• verb
British To fit, furnish, or construct a window, door, or opening with angled overlapping slats or ventilation slots.
"The architect decided to louvre the upper panels of the conservatory so hot air could escape naturally during the summer."
Word Nuance & Usage
'Louvre' is the standard British and Commonwealth spelling for a slatted vent or shutter (spelled 'louver' in American English). When capitalized as 'the Louvre', it refers exclusively to the historic former royal palace and national art museum in Paris.
• Rhymes for louvre
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
As a common noun, it derives from Middle English 'lover', from Old French 'lovier' (skylight or roof turret), likely of Germanic origin related to 'lodge' or 'roof'. The name of the Parisian palace (French 'Louvre') is of uncertain origin, traditionally linked either to Latin 'lupara' (wolf-hunting lodge) or Frankish 'leovar' (fortified camp).