sill

noun

ˈsil 

1

: a horizontal piece (such as a timber) that forms the lowest member or one of the lowest members of a framework or supporting structure: such as

a

: the horizontal member at the base of a window

b

: the threshold of a door

2

: a tabular body of igneous rock injected while molten between sedimentary or volcanic beds or along foliation planes of metamorphic rocks

3

: a submerged ridge at relatively shallow depth separating the basins of two bodies of water

Examples of sill in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The restaurant walls are decorated with facades that evoke charming residential streets somewhere in Latin America, complete with pink and yellow houses with sills popped out to display planter boxes overflowing with flowers. —Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 29 Feb. 2024

That later became Hard Knocks 365 (which sill exists) in Fort Lauderdale and then Sanford MMA and now Kill Cliff FC, one of the premiere MMA training centers in the world. —The McClatchy Media Network, Miami Herald, 21 Feb. 2024

New brushed aluminum door sill protectors can be found inside. —Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 6 Feb. 2024

However, these dikes also extend as sills in shallow angles out from the Contention fault along fold noses in the Bisbee clastic sediments so the full range of mineralization dips vary from 20 to 80 degrees. —Kansas City Star, 10 Apr. 2024

Start by cleaning off sills with a paper towel or cloth soaked in hot water. —Jennifer Barger, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024

Not only was Vieyra’s blood in the sink, Ross found, but his palm print appeared on the bedroom wall and the sill of the window that the killer had broken to enter the house. —Cindy Chang, Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2024

By early February, the sill had exceeded that threshold, and on February 8, another eruption began. —Robin George Andrews, Quanta Magazine, 20 Feb. 2024

Seamless door handles 64-color ambient lighting, a wireless smartphone charger, biometric fingerprint scanner, and illuminated door sills add to the upscale offerings. —James Raia, The Mercury News, 18 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English sille, from Old English syll; akin to Old High German swelli beam, threshold

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

sill

noun

ˈsil 

1

: a horizontal piece (as a timber) that forms the lowest part of a supporting structure: as

a

: the horizontal piece at the base of a window

b

: the timber or stone at the foot of a door : threshold

2

: a flat mass of igneous rock injected while melted between other rocks