roof
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roof¹
- /ɹuːf/
- /ɹʊf/
- /ɹuːf/ UK
- /ɹʉwf/ British, Southern, Standard
- /ɾuːf/ UK, Wales
- /ɾʉf/ Scotland, UK
- /ɻʉf/ Northern Ireland, UK
- /ɹuːf/ US
- /ɹʊf/ Inland Northern American, US
- /ɹuːf/ Canada, Canadian, Standard
- /ɹʊf/ Canada
Rhymes with -ʊf, -uːf
Where it comes from
From Middle English rhof, rof, roof, rooff, rufe, ruffe, from Old English hrōf (“roof; heaven, sky”), from Proto-West Germanic *hrōf, from Proto-Germanic *hrōfą (“roof”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱrapo- (“roof”), from *krāwə- (“to cover, heap”).
Cognates
Cognate with Dutch roef (“cabin on a boat”), Faroese rógv (“roof”); also Czech, Polish, and Slovene strop (“ceiling”), Russian строп (strop, “attic, loft, roof”), Serbo-Croatian стро̏п, strȍp (“ceiling”).
noun roofs · rooves · roofe
- The external covering at the top of a building. The roof was blown off by the tornado.
- The top external level of a building. Let's go up to the roof.
-
The upper part of a cavity.
The palate is the roof of the mouth.
Similar: ceiling
- The surface or bed of rock immediately overlying a bed of coal or a flat vein.
- An overhanging rock wall.
- A hat. Tom thought his cap a very knowing affair, but confessed that he had a hat in his hat-box; which was accordingly at once extracted from the hind-boot, and Tom equipped in his go-to-meeting roof, as his new friend called it.
roof²
- /ɹuːf/
- /ɹʊf/
- /ɹuːf/ UK
- /ɹʉwf/ British, Southern, Standard
- /ɾuːf/ UK, Wales
- /ɾʉf/ Scotland, UK
- /ɻʉf/ Northern Ireland, UK
- /ɹuːf/ US
- /ɹʊf/ Inland Northern American, US
- /ɹuːf/ Canada, Canadian, Standard
- /ɹʊf/ Canada
Rhymes with -ʊf, -uːf
Where it comes from
From Middle English rofen, roven (“to roof”), from the noun (see above).
verb roofs · roofing · roofed
- To cover or furnish with a roof. A trench about ten feet deep was dug in the ground and roofed over with sticks and earth so as to form a dark tunnel.
- To traverse buildings by walking or climbing across their roofs.
- To put into prison, to bird. Did you see them, David? I mean, did you see them looking at me? I-I'm walking out of the court, and everybody was practically – yeah, they were gawking. […] I mean, Noah roofed me, I proved it, end of story.
- To shelter as if under a roof. They reached him: the pieces of rock had roofed him over—he was without injury or scratch.
Roof³
Where it comes from
Calque of Mandarin 危宿 (Wēixiù).
proper noun
-
A Chinese constellation located near Aquarius and Pegasus, one of the 28 lunar mansions and part of the larger Black Turtle.
Similar: Rooftop
Roof⁴
Where it comes from
* As an English surname, spelling variant of Rolfe.
* As a German surname, from a personal name ultimately derived from Proto-West Germanic *hrōþi (“fame, glory, renown”); also Americanized from Ruff, itself shortened from Rudolf (and from the same root).
proper noun Roofs
- A surname.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: rooftop, vault, deck, housetop, dome, ceiling, arch, terrace, porch, patio, ledge, tile, pavilion, canopy, umbrella, court
Translations
Every language
noun the cover at the top of a building
| Español | tejado, techo, techado, techumbre, cubrición, tejadillo |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 지붕 jibung |
| 日本語 | 屋根 yane |
| 中文 | 屋頂 /屋顶 wūdǐng, 房頂 /房顶 fángdǐng |
| हिन्दी | छत chat |
| Kiswahili | paa |
| Português | telhado |
| Français | toit |
| Deutsch | Dach |
| Italiano | tetto |
| Ελληνικά | στέγη stégi, σκεπή skepí, οροφή orofí |
| Română | acoperiș |
| Русский | кры́ша krýša, кров krov, строп strop, стреха́ strexá |
| Tiếng Việt | mái nhà, mái |
| العربية | سَقْف saqf, سَطْح saṭḥ |
| עברית | גַּג gag |
noun the upper part of a cavity
| Español | techo |
|---|---|
| Kiswahili | paa |
| Português | céu, teto |
| Français | toit |
| Ελληνικά | οροφή orofí |
| Română | acoperământ |
| Русский | свод svod |
| Tiếng Việt | trần |
verb to cover or furnish with a roof
| Español | techar |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | überdachen |
| Ελληνικά | στεγάζω stegázo |
Talk about this word "roof." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/roof. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. roof. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/roof "roof." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/roof.Cite this
@misc{roof_2026,
title = {roof},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/roof},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
