loft

/lɒft/ (bre, ipa) · /lɔːft/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈlȯft/ (ame, mw) · /lɑːft/ (ame, ipa)

loft — noun

  • loftsingular
  • loftsplural

1. an open area just under the roof of a house or building, usually reached by a la

1.名詞B1
釋義

an open area just under the roof of a house or building, usually reached by a ladder, where people store things and sometimes turn into a bedroom or study

例句

Keiko found her grandmother's old sewing machine in the dusty loft.

collocation: dusty loft

The children pulled down the ladder and climbed into the loft to play.

同義詞
  • attic

    more commonly used in American English; often implies an unfinished storage area

  • garret

    old-fashioned word for a small, cramped room at the top of a house, often with a sense of poverty

用法筆記

Common especially in British English; in American English, 'attic' is the more frequent word for this meaning.

2. a floor or platform that is higher than the main floor of a room or building, su

2.名詞B1
釋義

a floor or platform that is higher than the main floor of a room or building, such as a gallery in a church, a mezzanine in a factory, or a sleeping area in an apartment

例句

The choir sang from the organ loft at the back of the church.

collocation: organ loft / choir loft

Amir stood on the wooden loft and looked down at the factory floor.

同義詞
  • gallery

    emphasises a balcony or walkway, often in a church or theatre

  • mezzanine

    more formal architectural term for an intermediate floor in a building

用法筆記

Often paired with a descriptive word: organ loft, choir loft, sleeping loft. Distinguish from sense 1 (ROOF SPACE): a raised level (sense 2) is inside a room and not necessarily under the roof.

3. a large, open-plan apartment made from a former factory, warehouse, or commercia

3.名詞B1
釋義

a large, open-plan apartment made from a former factory, warehouse, or commercial building, often keeping original features like high ceilings, exposed brick, and big windows

例句

Diego rented a spacious loft in the old textile district downtown.

The artist turned her loft into both a home and a working studio.

collocation: artist's loft

同義詞
  • studio apartment

    a small, single-room flat; does not imply industrial conversion or high ceilings

  • warehouse conversion

    emphasises the building's previous use more than the living space itself

用法筆記

Distinguish from sense 1 (ROOF SPACE): a converted loft apartment is in a former industrial building, while a roof loft was always part of a house. Only this sense works for the phrase 'artist's loft' or 'loft apartment.'

常見錯誤

I live in a loft in the countryside' (when you mean a converted farmhouse attic).
I live in a converted loft apartment in the old factory district.
💡a loft as a home (sense 3) refers specifically to a former industrial space, not any high-ceilinged residence.

loft — verb