aisle

noun

ˈī(-ə)l 

1

a(1)

: a passage (as in a theater or railroad passenger car) separating sections of seats

(2)

: such a passage regarded as separating opposing parties in a legislature

supported by members on both sides of the aisle

b

: a passage (as in a store or warehouse) for inside traffic

2

: the side of a church nave separated by piers from the nave proper

Phrases

walk down the aisle or less commonly go down the aisle

: to get married

Prenuptial agreements have long been used by couples who want to set down the terms of any future divorce before they walk down the aisle.

—Desa Philadelpha

Examples of aisle in a Sentence

The bride walked down the aisle to the altar.

By the end of the concert, the people in the theater were dancing in the aisles.

Recent Examples on the Web

Opposition to and support of the project came from both sides of the aisle. —Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 4 Apr. 2024

At their ceremony, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce was one of the couple’s groomsmen, while little Sterling rode down the aisle in a tiny blue toy car. —Angel Saunders, Peoplemag, 2 Apr. 2024

Simon Cowell will be walking down the aisle twice in the near future. —Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 1 Apr. 2024

The people on the other side of the aisle are enemies. —Doug Sundheim, Forbes, 30 Mar. 2024

Barca, meanwhile, has frequently earned praise from both sides of the aisle during his career. —Lawrence Andrea, Journal Sentinel, 28 Mar. 2024

The outpouring of sorrow didn’t stop there, with lawmakers from both sides of the aisle paying their respects. —Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 28 Mar. 2024

Police said the incident began with an argument over the victim’s leg blocking the aisle. —Minnah Arshad, USA TODAY, 26 Mar. 2024

Their big day saw the couple's then 1-year-old daughter riding down the aisle in a little blue car, while Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce served as a groomsman. —Gabrielle Rockson, Peoplemag, 22 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English ele, eill, ile, ilde "lateral division of a church on either side of the nave, usually divided from the nave by pillars," borrowed from Anglo-French ele, esle, aile, ile "wing, wing of a building, lateral division of a nave" (continental Old French ele "wing, wing of a building"), going back to Latin āla "wing" — more at ala

Note: The Middle English forms ile, ilde show assimilation to ile, ilde "island" (see isle entry 1)—the rows on either side of the nave perhaps being thought of as isolated from the rest of the church—and effectively supplant ele, eill, etc. in the sixteenth century. The d in ilde is a secondary extrusion (compare mold entry 3). In early Modern English ile competes orthographically with a variety of other spellings, as ayle/aile, which appears to have regressed to the sense "wing" and adopted the Middle French spelling aile, an etymologizing variant of earlier ele; and isle, which copies the spelling of isle entry 1. The now standard spelling aisle looks like a merger of aile and isle. Samuel Johnson enters aisle in his dictionary (1755) with some reluctance: "Thus the word is written by [Joseph] Addison, but perhaps improperly; since it seems deducible only from either aile, a wing, or allée, a path; and is therefore to be written aile." As Johnson was likely aware, aisle had developed a broadened sense "passage between pews in the middle of a church" that copies a now out-of-use sense of alley entry 1. The still broader extensions "passage between seats in a train, bus or airplane" and "space between rows of items in a department store or supermarket" first appeared in American English.

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing aisle

• go down the aisle
• walk down the aisle
• on the aisle

Kids Definition

aisle

noun

ˈī(ə)l 

1

: a passage between sections of seats (as in a church or theater)

2

: a passage between shelves (as in a store)