cabin

1 of 2

noun

cab·​in ˈka-bən 

1

a(1)

: a private room on a ship or boat

(2)

: a compartment below deck on a boat used for living accommodations

b

: the passenger or cargo compartment of a vehicle (such as an airplane or automobile)

c

: the crew compartment of an exploratory vehicle (such as a spacecraft)

2

: a small one-story dwelling usually of simple construction

3

chiefly British : cab sense 3

cabin

2 of 2

verb

cabined; cabining; cabins

intransitive verb

: to live in or as if in a cabin

transitive verb

: confine, restrain

significantly cabins the discretion of administrators

—A. M. Dershowitz

Synonyms

Noun

• camp
• hooch [slang]
• hootch
• hovel
• hut
• hutch
• hutment
• shack
• shanty

Examples of cabin in a Sentence

Noun

a cabin in the woods

Don't unbuckle your seat belt until the flight attendant says it is safe to move around the cabin.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Featuring a single horizontal screen that effectively replaces the traditional dashboard, the minimalist cabin is yet another example of Nakamura’s design philosophy that centers on clean lines, quality materials and user-centric functionality. —Peter Lyon, Forbes, 27 Oct. 2024

The appeal of tiny living goes way beyond the Instagram aesthetic of cute container homes and miniature mobile cabins. —Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 26 Oct. 2024

Verb

If not appropriately cabined, such a committee could have the potential to slow Google's innovation and incentive to innovate. —Alden Abbott, Forbes, 11 Oct. 2024

Thus cabined, cribbed, and confined, the left can hardly be surprised that its agenda has again dropped out of sight. —Andrew Cockburn, Harper's Magazine, 25 Aug. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English cabane, from Middle French, from Old Occitan cabana hut, from Medieval Latin capanna

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Verb

1586, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Phrases Containing cabin

• cabin boy
• cabin car
• cabin class
• cabin cruiser
• cabin fever
• log cabin
• pressure cabin

Kids Definition

cabin

noun

cab·​in

ˈkab-ən

1

a

: a small private room on a ship

b

: a compartment below deck on a small boat for passengers or crew

c

: a compartment (as in an airplane, airship, or spacecraft) for cargo, crew, or passengers

2

: a small simple dwelling usually having only one story