noun, plural hous⋅es [hou-ziz]
, verb, housed, hous⋅ing, adjective | 1. | a building in which people live; residence for human beings. |
| 2. | a household. |
| 3. | (often initial capital letter ) a family, including ancestors and descendants: the great houses of France; the House of Hapsburg. |
| 4. | a building for any purpose: a house of worship. |
| 5. | a theater, concert hall, or auditorium: a vaudeville house. |
| 6. | the audience of a theater or the like. |
| 7. | a place of shelter for an animal, bird, etc. |
| 8. | the building in which a legislative or official deliberative body meets. |
| 9. | (initial capital letter ) the body itself, esp. of a bicameral legislature: the House of Representatives. |
| 10. | a quorum of such a body. |
| 11. | (often initial capital letter ) a commercial establishment; business firm: the House of Rothschild; a publishing house. |
| 12. | a gambling casino. |
| 13. | the management of a commercial establishment or of a gambling casino: rules of the house. |
| 14. | an advisory or deliberative group, esp. in church or college affairs. |
| 15. | a college in an English-type university. |
| 16. | a residential hall in a college or school; dormitory. |
| 17. | the members or residents of any such residential hall. |
| 18. | Informal. a brothel; whorehouse. |
| 19. | British. a variety of lotto or bingo played with paper and pencil, esp. by soldiers as a gambling game. |
| 20. | Also called parish. Curling. the area enclosed by a circle 12 or 14 ft. (3.7 or 4.2 m) in diameter at each end of the rink, having the tee in the center. |
| 21. | Nautical. any enclosed shelter above the weather deck of a vessel: bridge house; deck house. |
| 22. | Astrology. one of the 12 divisions of the celestial sphere, numbered counterclockwise from the point of the eastern horizon. |
| 23. | to put or receive into a house, dwelling, or living quarters: More than 200 students were housed in the dormitory. |
| 24. | to give shelter to; harbor; lodge: to house flood victims in schools. |
| 25. | to provide with a place to work, study, or the like: This building houses our executive staff. |
| 26. | to provide storage space for; be a receptacle for or repository of: The library houses 600,000 books. |
| 27. | to remove from exposure; put in a safe place. |
| 28. | Nautical.
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| 29. | Carpentry.
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| 30. | to take shelter; dwell. |
| 31. | of, pertaining to, or noting a house. |
| 32. | for or suitable for a house: house paint. |
| 33. | of or being a product made by or for a specific retailer and often sold under the store's own label: You'll save money on the radio if you buy the house brand. |
| 34. | served by a restaurant as its customary brand: the house wine. |
| 35. | bring down the house, to call forth vigorous applause from an audience; be highly successful: The children's performances brought down the house. |
| 36. | clean house. clean (def. 48). |
| 37. | dress the house, Theater.
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| 38. | keep house, to maintain a home; manage a household. |
| 39. | like a house on fire or afire, very quickly; with energy or enthusiasm: The new product took off like a house on fire. |
| 40. | on the house, as a gift from the management; free: Tonight the drinks are on the house. |
| 41. | put or set one's house in order,
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"And the Prophet Isaiah the sonne of Amos came to him, and saide vnto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not liue." [2 Kings xx.1, version of 1611]
house
put one's house in order
Arrange one's affairs, as in Stop meddling in your daughter's business and put your own house in order. This metaphoric term appears in slightly different form in the Bible (Isaiah 38:1): "Set thine house in order." [Late 1500s]