loft

Upper space within a building, often open on one side, used for storage or other purposes (e.g., sleeping loft, hayloft). The term also refers to one of the upper floors in a factory or warehouse, typically undivided by partitions and now often converted to other uses, such as residences or artists' studios. In churches the rood loft is a display gallery above the rood screen (see cathedral), and a choir or organ loft is a gallery reserved for church singers and musicians. In theaters, the loft is the area above and behind the proscenium.