belfry
English
Etymology
From Middle EnglishCategory:English terms inherited from Middle English#BELFRYCategory:English terms derived from Middle English#BELFRY belfry, bellfray, belfray, berfrey, barfray, from Old FrenchCategory:English terms derived from Old French#BELFRY belfroi, berfroi, berfrey, from Late LatinCategory:English terms derived from Late Latin#BELFRY berfrēdus, from FrankishCategory:English terms derived from Frankish#BELFRY *bergafriþu, from Proto-GermanicCategory:English terms derived from Proto-Germanic#BELFRY *bergafriþuz, equivalent to barrow + frith. English forms containing bel- as opposed to ber- were preferred due to false association with English bell. Cognate with Middle High German bërcvrit, bërvrit (“defensive tower”) (modern German Bergfried),[1][2][3] Middle Dutch bergfrede, bergfert. Doublet of bergfriedCategory:English doublets#BELFRY.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈbɛlfɹi/Category:English 2-syllable words#BELFRYCategory:English terms with IPA pronunciation#BELFRY, enPR: bĕlʹfrē
Category:English terms with audio pronunciation#BELFRYAudio (Southern England): (file) - Rhymes: -ɛlfɹiCategory:Rhymes:English/ɛlfɹi#BELFRYCategory:Rhymes:English/ɛlfɹi/2 syllables#BELFRY
Noun
belfry (plural belfries)Category:English lemmas#BELFRYCategory:English nouns#BELFRYCategory:English countable nouns#BELFRYCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#BELFRYCategory:Pages with entries#BELFRYCategory:Pages with 1 entry#BELFRY
- (architectureCategory:en:Architecture#BELFRY) A tower or steeple typically containing bells, especially as part of a church.
- 2023 August 31, William Meny & Paul Simms, “A Weekend at Morrigan Manor” (9:33 from the start), in What We Do in the Shadows, season 5, episode 9, spoken by The Guide (Kristen Schaal):
- “You know, this house does have a belfry filled with local bats. Maybe Laszlo went up there.” “Oh, so like my darling perverted husband, to sniff out the local bordello immediately upon arrival. [chuckles] Could you take me to the belfry?”Category:English terms with quotations#BELFRY
- (architectureCategory:en:Architecture#BELFRY) A part of a large tower or steeple, specifically for containing bells.
- 1922 February, James Joyce, “[The Cyclops]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, […], →OCLC:
- From the belfries far and near the funereal deathbell tolled unceasingly while all around the gloomy precincts rolled the ominous warning of a hundred muffled drums punctuated by the hollow booming of pieces of ordnance.Category:English terms with quotations#BELFRY
- (dialectalCategory:English dialectal terms#BELFRY) A shed.
- (obsoleteCategory:English terms with obsolete senses#BELFRY) A movable tower used in sieges.
- (obsoleteCategory:English terms with obsolete senses#BELFRY) An alarm-tower; a watchtower possibly containing an alarm-bell.
Derived terms
Translations
tower or steeple specifically for containing bells, especially as part of a church
part of a large tower or steeple, specifically for containing bells
moveable tower used in sieges
watchtower containing an alarm-bell
Category:Entries with translation boxes#BELFRY
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References
- ↑ Douglas Harper (2001–2026), “belfry”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
- ↑ “belfry”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- ↑ Alternative spelling and languages with loanwords from the Middle High German word, in Benecke's Mittelhochdeutsches Wörterbuch
- Michael Quinion (2004), “Belfry”, in Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books in association with Penguin Books, →ISBN.
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Category:en:Architecture