mansion

See also: mansión

English

A Victorian mansion in Eureka, CA.

Alternative forms

• mansioun (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English mansioun, borrowed from Anglo-Norman mansion, mansiun, from Latin mansiō (“dwelling, stopping-place”), from the past participle stem of manēre (“stay”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmæn(t)ʃən/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

Noun

mansion (plural mansions)

2. A large house or building, usually built for the wealthy.
3. (Britain) A luxurious flat (apartment).
4. (obsolete) A house provided for a clergyman; a manse.
5. (obsolete) A stopping-place during a journey; a stage.
   • 1658, Thomas Browne, “The Garden of Cyrus. […]. Chapter V.”, in Hydriotaphia, Urne-buriall, […] Together with The Garden of Cyrus, […], London: […] Hen[ry] Brome […], OCLC 48702491; reprinted as Hydriotaphia (The English Replicas), New York, N.Y.: Payson & Clarke Ltd., 1927, OCLC 78413388, page 192:

     According to that Cabaliſticall Dogma: If Abram had not had this Letter [i.e., ה‎ (he)] added unto his Name he had remained fruitleſſe, and without the power of generation: […] So that being ſterill before, he received the power of generation from that meaſure and manſion in the Archetype; and was made conformable unto Binah.

6. (historical) An astrological house; a station of the moon.
   • 1387-1400, Geoffrey Chaucer, ‘The Franklin's Tale’, Canterbury Tales

     Which book spak muchel of the operaciouns / Touchynge the eighte and twenty mansiouns / That longen to the moone

7. (Chinese astronomy) One of twenty-eight sections of the sky.
8. (chiefly in the plural) An individual habitation or apartment within a large house or group of buildings. (Now chiefly in allusion to John 14:2.)
   • 1611, Bible, Authorized (King James) Version, John XIV.2:

     In my Father's house are many mansions [transl. μοναὶ (monaì)]: if it were not so, I would have told you.

   • 1667, John Denham, On Mr Abraham Cowley, his Death, and Burial amongst the Ancient Poets

     These poets near our princes sleep, / And in one grave their mansion keep.

   • 2003, The Economist, (subtitle), 18 Dec 2003:

     The many mansions in one east London house of God.

9. Any of the branches of the Rastafari movement.

Derived terms

• mansionette
• mansionry
• McMansion

Related terms

• maison
• maisonette
• manor
• manse
• mansionette
• mansion house
• mansion place
• mansionry
• mansion stage
• menage
• menial

 

Descendants

• Japanese: マンション (manshon) (borrowed)

Translations

large house or building

• Armenian: առանձնատուն (hy) (aṙanjnatun)
• Belarusian: асабня́к m (asabnják)
• Berber:

  Tashelhit: brgmmi m

• Bulgarian: резиденция (bg) f (rezidencija)
• Catalan: mansió (ca) f, casalici m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 豪宅 (zh) (háozhái), (literary) 宅第 (zh) (zháidì), (archaic; of a rich person or important official) 公館 (zh), 公馆 (zh) (gōngguǎn)

• Dutch: landhuis (nl) n
• Esperanto: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: kartano (fi), linna (fi)
• French: manoir (fr) m, demeure (fr) f
• Galician: mansión f, pazo (gl) m
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: Herrenhaus (de) n, Villa (de) f, Anwesen (de) n
• Greek: αρχοντικό (el) n (archontikó)

  Ancient Greek: στέγος n (stégos)

• Hebrew: אַרְמוֹן‎ (he) m (ʾarmón), טִירָה‎ (he) f (tirá), מָעוֹן‎ (he) m (ma'ón)
• Hindi: हवेली (hi) f (havelī), महल (hi) m (mahal)
• Icelandic: please add this translation if you can
• Irish: teach mór m

• Japanese: 大邸宅 (だいていたく, daiteitaku), 豪邸 (ごうてい, gōtei)
• Korean: 대저택 (ko) (daejeotaek)
• Latvian: please add this translation if you can
• Lithuanian: please add this translation if you can
• Malay: rumah agam
• Ngazidja Comorian: djumɓa 5 or 6
• Persian: کوشک‎ (fa) (kušk)
• Portuguese: solar (pt) m, mansão (pt) f
• Romanian: palat (ro) n, conac (ro) n, curte (ro) f
• Russian: особня́к (ru) m (osobnják), (colloquial) хоро́мы (ru) pl (xorómy), (colloquial) дворе́ц (ru) m (dvoréc), поме́стье (ru) n (poméstʹje) (manor)
• Scottish Gaelic: taigh-mòr m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Roman: ljetnikovac (sh) m

• Spanish: mansión (es) f, casoplón (es) (colloquial), palacete (es) m
• Swahili: jumba (sw)
• Tagalog: himbabahay
• Thai: คฤหาสน์ (th) (ká-rʉ́-hàat)
• Turkish: konak (tr), saray (tr), malikâne (tr), mansiyon (tr)
• Ukrainian: особня́к m (osobnják)
• Volapük: kased (vo)
• Welsh: plasty (cy)

Anagrams

• Manions, Minoans, amnions, onanism

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Middle English

Noun

mansion

1. Alternative form of mansioun