curtain

1 of 2

noun

cur·​tain ˈkər-tᵊn How to pronounce curtain (audio)
1
: a hanging screen usually capable of being drawn back or up
especially : window drapery
2
: a device or agency that conceals or acts as a barrier compare iron curtain
3
a
: the part of a bastioned front that connects two neighboring bastions
b(1)
: a similar stretch of plain wall
(2)
: a nonbearing exterior wall
4
a
: the movable screen separating the stage from the auditorium of a theater
b
: the ascent or opening (as at the beginning of a play) of a stage curtain
also : its descent or closing (as at the end of an act)
c
: the final situation, line, or scene of an act or play
d
: the time at which a theatrical performance begins
e
curtains plural : end
especially : death
it will be curtains for us if we're caught
curtainless adjective

curtain

2 of 2

verb

curtained; curtaining ˈkərt-niŋ How to pronounce curtain (audio)
-ˈkər-tᵊn-iŋ

transitive verb

1
: to furnish with or as if with curtains
2
: to veil or shut off with or as if with a curtain

Examples of curtain in a Sentence

Noun Curtains separated the hospital beds. When the curtain rises after intermission, the set is bare and the main character finds himself alone. As the curtain falls for the last time, we see a young woman holding a dying man in her arms. Verb she dropped her head in shame and curtained her face with her hair
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
In its early days, the new law’s effects will be more about the power struggles behind the curtain of the world’s biggest companies; not about making netizens’ lives easier. Morgan Meaker, WIRED, 6 Mar. 2024 This curtain is also slightly longer than your standard shower curtain, with a length of 74 inches. Andrea Wurzburger, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Mar. 2024 On the horizon the rubble glows red, as the curtain falls. Jennifer Homans, The New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2024 Trending on Billboard The screams become truly deafening when, roughly 10 minutes later, the curtain opens to reveal the diminutive 55-year-old Australian pop star clad entirely in metallic gold. Rebecca Milzoff, Billboard, 29 Feb. 2024 But on March 15 when the curtain lifts on the NFL’s new year, the Rams will be primed to spring into action. Jay Paris, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024 The curtain opens as the overture does, to reveal the Calatrava Hotel. Zachary Woolfe, New York Times, 27 Feb. 2024 John Doe 12 said Thompson assaulted him with only the curtain preventing anyone else from seeing was going on. Josh Cain, Orange County Register, 25 Feb. 2024 An hour and a half later, Tung, DiFranco, and the rest of the Hadestown cast raised their cups to the audience during their final number, as the curtain closed—and the crowd, almost instantaneously, jumped up from their seats once again. Elise Taylor, Vogue, 23 Feb. 2024
Verb
If even these middle-of-the-road precursors couldn’t find room for the accessible sports dramedy, that’s probably the end of its run as a dark-horse Oscar player, and therefore curtains for Davis’s Supporting Actress hopes. Vulture, 8 Dec. 2023 And Beijing has made clear its restrictions on critical minerals are payback for Washington’s efforts to curtain Chinese access to advanced American semiconductors. Lily Kuo, Washington Post, 29 Nov. 2023 Kelce's pants bear a striking resemblance to the velvet curtains Swift had in the background of all of her Midnights tracklist reveal TikTok videos. Hedy Phillips, Peoplemag, 10 Oct. 2023 His study participants were able to predict, with reasonable accuracy, which curtain on a computer screen hid an erotic image. Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2023 And just over her shoulder was the world’s most extraordinary room: walls curtained in red-brown print (and, in memory, a tented ceiling), French furniture artfully scattered on a needlepoint carpet stitched with blackamoor heads, and, above the whole, a Venetian chandelier centered by a clock. Town & Country, 17 Aug. 2023 Nifty air curtains precisely direct air through front wheel arches to soothe turbulence. IEEE Spectrum, 22 Apr. 2023 The upper level of the 18,000-seat arena was curtained off; fans filled about half of the lower bowl and suites and a significant percentage of the high-dollar floor seats. Dave Kallmann, Journal Sentinel, 2 Apr. 2023 The singer wore an ornate bandeau bra embellished with hanging strands of crystals that curtained her baby bump. André-Naquian Wheeler, Vogue, 12 Mar. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'curtain.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English curtine, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin cortina (translation of Greek aulaia, from aulē court), from Latin cohort-, cohors enclosure, court — more at court

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of curtain was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near curtain

Cite this Entry

“Curtain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/curtain. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

curtain

noun
cur·​tain
ˈkərt-ᵊn
1
: a piece of material (as cloth) hung up to darken, hide, divide, or decorate
2
: the opening or closing of the curtain in front of the stage of a theater
3
: something that covers, hides, or separates like a curtain
curtain verb

More from Merriam-Webster on curtain

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