: a piece, section, or side of something: such as
a
: a framed sheet of glass in a window or door
frost on a window pane
b
: one of the sections into which a sheet of postage stamps is cut for distribution

Examples of pane in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
A week ago, a 16-year-old shooter forced his way into Silver Rail Elementary School in the central Oregon city of Bend by firing into the glass panes of an external set of doors, according to police. — Ray Sanchez, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2026 The gleam that lights up the windows when the day has yet to be born, and the black silhouettes that move along the panes, making coffee, dressing, living. — Literary Hub, 21 Oct. 2026 The stairs had been mismeasured, requiring scaffolding to be erected at the last minute to haul roughly 10-foot panes of glass through a window. — Sean Santiago, Architectural Digest, 21 Oct. 2026 The stencil could be outlined on a pane of conventional glass. — Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for pane

Word History

Etymology

Middle English pane, pan, payne, peyne "panel of an ornamental hanging or a curtain, side of a building, section of a wall, windowpane," borrowed from Anglo-French pan, pane "piece of cloth, tail of a shirt, skirt of a coat, parcel, stretch, territory" (also continental Old & Middle French), going back to Latin pannus "piece of cloth, rag" — more at vane

Note: Homonymous with Middle English pane in these senses is pane "cloak, mantle, fur lining or trim of a garment, rich fur or fabric," borrowed from Anglo-French and Old French penne, panne in these senses. Middle English Dictionary groups these with all the other senses of panne, but the Oxford English Dictionary and Anglo-Norman Dictionary treat them separately, as descended from Latin pinna "feather" (see pen entry 3), reflecting a calque of Old High German fedara, meaning both "feather" and "article made of fur" (or a cognate Germanic form).

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pane was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pane.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pane. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

Kids Definition

1
: a piece, section, or side of something (as a sheet of glass in a window)
2
: one of the sections (as of 50 or 100 stamps) into which a sheet of postage stamps is divided
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