curtain


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cur·tain

 (kûr′tn)
n.
1. A piece of fabric or other material that hangs in a window or open space as a decoration, shade, screen, or divider.
2. Something that functions as or resembles a screen, cover, divider, or barrier: the curtain of mist before the mountain; a heavy curtain of artillery fire.
3.
a. The movable screen or drape in a theater or hall that separates the stage from the auditorium or that serves as a backdrop.
b. The rising or opening of a theater curtain at the beginning of a performance or act.
c. The time at which a theatrical performance begins or is scheduled to begin.
d. The fall or closing of a theater curtain at the end of a performance or act.
4. The part of a rampart or parapet connecting two bastions or gates.
5. Architecture A curtain wall.
6. curtains Slang
a. The end.
b. Absolute ruin: "If the employee doesn't shape up, it's curtains" (Business Week).
c. Death.
tr.v. cur·tained, cur·tain·ing, cur·tains
1. To provide (something) with a curtain or curtains.
2. To close off (something) with a curtain or curtains.

[Middle English cortine, from Old French, from Late Latin cōrtīna, from Latin cōrs, cōrt-, variant of cohors, court; see court.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

curtain

(ˈkɜːtən)
n
1. a piece of material that can be drawn across an opening or window, to shut out light or to provide privacy
2. a barrier to vision, access, or communication: a curtain of secrecy.
3. (Theatre) a hanging cloth or similar barrier for concealing all or part of a theatre stage from the audience
4. (Theatre) the curtain the end of a scene of a play, opera, etc, marked by the fall or closing of the curtain
5. (Theatre) the rise or opening of the curtain at the start of a performance
vb
6. (sometimes foll by: off) to shut off or conceal with or as if with a curtain
7. (tr) to provide (a window, etc) with curtains
[C13: from Old French courtine, from Late Latin cortīna enclosed place, curtain, probably from Latin cohors courtyard]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

cur•tain

(ˈkɜr tn)

n.
1. a hanging piece of fabric used to shut out the light from a window, adorn a room, increase privacy, etc.
2. a movable or folding screen used for similar purposes.
3.
a. a movable drapery that hangs directly behind a proscenium arch and conceals the stage from the audience.
b. the start or end of a performance, scene, act, or play, esp. the time at which a performance begins.
c. an effect, line, or plot solution at the conclusion of a performance.
d. (used as a direction in a script to indicate the end of a scene or act.)
4. anything that shuts off, covers, or conceals: a curtain of artillery fire.
6. the part of a wall or rampart connecting two bastions or towers.
7. curtains, Slang. the end; death, esp. by violence.
v.t.
8. to provide, shut off, conceal, or adorn with or as if with a curtain.
Idioms:
1. draw the curtain on or over,
a. to bring to a close.
b. to keep secret.
2. lift the curtain on,
a. to start.
b. to make known or public; disclose.
[1250–1300; Middle English co(u)rtine < Old French < Late Latin cortīna, probably = Latin co(ho)rt-, s. of cohors (see court) + -īna -ine1, as calque of Greek aulaía curtain, derivative of aulḗ courtyard]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

curtain


Past participle: curtained
Gerund: curtaining

Imperative
curtain
curtain
Present
I curtain
you curtain
he/she/it curtains
we curtain
you curtain
they curtain
Preterite
I curtained
you curtained
he/she/it curtained
we curtained
you curtained
they curtained
Present Continuous
I am curtaining
you are curtaining
he/she/it is curtaining
we are curtaining
you are curtaining
they are curtaining
Present Perfect
I have curtained
you have curtained
he/she/it has curtained
we have curtained
you have curtained
they have curtained
Past Continuous
I was curtaining
you were curtaining
he/she/it was curtaining
we were curtaining
you were curtaining
they were curtaining
Past Perfect
I had curtained
you had curtained
he/she/it had curtained
we had curtained
you had curtained
they had curtained
Future
I will curtain
you will curtain
he/she/it will curtain
we will curtain
you will curtain
they will curtain
Future Perfect
I will have curtained
you will have curtained
he/she/it will have curtained
we will have curtained
you will have curtained
they will have curtained
Future Continuous
I will be curtaining
you will be curtaining
he/she/it will be curtaining
we will be curtaining
you will be curtaining
they will be curtaining
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been curtaining
you have been curtaining
he/she/it has been curtaining
we have been curtaining
you have been curtaining
they have been curtaining
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been curtaining
you will have been curtaining
he/she/it will have been curtaining
we will have been curtaining
you will have been curtaining
they will have been curtaining
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been curtaining
you had been curtaining
he/she/it had been curtaining
we had been curtaining
you had been curtaining
they had been curtaining
Conditional
I would curtain
you would curtain
he/she/it would curtain
we would curtain
you would curtain
they would curtain
Past Conditional
I would have curtained
you would have curtained
he/she/it would have curtained
we would have curtained
you would have curtained
they would have curtained
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.curtain - hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)curtain - hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
screen, blind - a protective covering that keeps things out or hinders sight; "they had just moved in and had not put up blinds yet"
drop cloth, drop curtain, drop - a curtain that can be lowered and raised onto a stage from the flies; often used as background scenery
eyelet, eyehole - a small hole (usually round and finished around the edges) in cloth or leather for the passage of a cord or hook or bar
festoon - a curtain of fabric draped and bound at intervals to form graceful curves
frontal - a drapery that covers the front of an altar
furnishing - (usually plural) the instrumentalities (furniture and appliances and other movable accessories including curtains and rugs) that make a home (or other area) livable
portiere - a heavy curtain hung across a doorway
shower curtain - a curtain that keeps water from splashing out of the shower area
theater curtain, theatre curtain - a hanging cloth that conceals the stage from the view of the audience; rises or parts at the beginning and descends or closes between acts and at the end of a performance
2.curtain - any barrier to communication or vision; "a curtain of secrecy"; "a curtain of trees"
barrier - anything serving to maintain separation by obstructing vision or access
Verb1.curtain - provide with drapery; "curtain the bedrooms"
furnish, provide, supply, render - give something useful or necessary to; "We provided the room with an electrical heater"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

curtain

noun
1. hanging, drape (chiefly U.S.), portière Her bedroom curtains were drawn.
2. screen, veil, shroud, pall a curtain of cigarette smoke
curtain something off conceal, screen, hide, veil, drape, shroud, shut off The bed was a massive four-poster, curtained off by ragged draperies.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

curtain

noun
Slang. The act or fact of dying.Used in plural:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
ستارةسِتَارَةسِتاره
oponazávěszáclona
gardintæppe
verhoverhotaesirippu
zavjesazastor
gluggatjald; leiktjald
カーテン
커튼
atitverti užuolaidapasirodymas scenoje aidint plojimamsuždangaužuolaida
aizkarspriekškars
zavesazastor
gardin
ผ้าม่าน
perdeperdelemek
rèm cửa

curtain

[ˈkɜːtn]
A. N
1. (gen) (Mil) → cortina f; (= lace, small etc) → visillo m (Theat) → telón m
to draw the curtains (together) → correr las cortinas; (apart) → abrir las cortinas
a curtain of fire (Mil) → una cortina de fuego
when the final curtain came downcuando el telón bajó por última vez
it'll be curtains for you!será el acabóse para ti
to raise the curtain on sthdar el pistoletazo de salida a algo
to bring the curtain down on sthponer punto final a algo
see also safety B
2. (fig) [of secrecy] → halo m; [of mist] → manto m
B. VTproveer de cortinas
C. CPD curtain call N (Theat) → llamada f a escena
curtain hook Ncolgadero m de cortina
curtain pole N = curtain rod curtain rail Nriel m (de las cortinas)
curtain ring Nanilla f (de las cortinas)
curtain rod Nbarra f (de las cortinas)
curtain wall N [of house, building] → muro mpl de cerramiento; [of castle] (= low wall outside) → contramuralla f, falsabraga f; (between bastions or towers) → lienzo m, muralla f
curtain off VT + ADV [+ separate room] → separar con cortina; [+ bed, area] → encerrar con cortina
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

curtain

[ˈkɜːrtən] n
(at window)rideau m
to draw the curtains (together)fermer les rideaux, tirer les rideaux; (apart)ouvrir les rideaux
(in theatre)rideau m
to bring down the curtain on sth → mettre fin à qchcurtain call n (in theatre)rappel m
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

curtain

n
Vorhang m; (= net curtain)Gardine f; to draw or pull the curtains (= open)den Vorhang/die Vorhänge aufziehen; (= close)den Vorhang/die Vorhänge zuziehen
(Theat) → Vorhang m; to drop the curtainden Vorhang fallen lassen; the curtain rises/falls or dropsder Vorhang hebt sich/fällt; the curtain rises on a scene of domestic harmonyder Vorhang hebt sich und gibt den Blick auf eine Szene häuslichen Glücks frei; to take the curtain (inf)vor den Vorhang treten; to bring the curtain down on something (fig)den Vorhang endgültig über etw (acc)fallen lassen
(fig: of mystery) → Schleier m; a curtain of smoke/flames/raineine Rauch-/Flammen-/Regenwand; if you get caught it’ll be curtains for you (inf)wenn sie dich erwischen, ist für dich der Ofen aus (inf)or bist du weg vom Fenster (inf)
vtmit Vorhängen/einem Vorhang ausstatten; a curtained bedein Himmelbett nt

curtain

:
curtain call
n (Theat) → Vorhang m; to take a curtainvor den Vorhang treten
curtain hook
nGardinengleithaken m
curtain pole
curtain rail
nVorhangschiene f
curtain-raiser
n (Theat) → kurzes Vorspiel
curtain ring
nGardinenring m
curtain rod
curtain runner
nVorhangschiene f; (for curtain rings) → Gardinenstange f
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

curtain

[ˈkɜːtn] ntenda (Theatre) → sipario
to draw the curtains (together) → chiudere or tirare le tende (apart) → aprire le tende
it'll be curtains for you! (fam) → per te sarà la fine!
curtain off vt + advseparare con una tenda
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

curtain

(ˈkəːtn) noun
a piece of material hung up to act as a screen at a window, on a theatre stage etc. The maid drew the curtains; The curtain came down at the end of the play.
curtain call
an appearance by actors, singers etc after a performance for the purpose of receiving applause. After the play the actors took ten curtain calls.
curtain off
to separate or enclose with a curtain. She curtained off the alcove.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

curtain

سِتَارَة závěs gardin Vorhang κουρτίνα cortina verho rideau zavjesa tenda カーテン 커튼 gordijn gardin zasłona cortina занавеска gardin ผ้าม่าน perde rèm cửa 窗帘
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
References in classic literature ?
The Dutch have, perhaps, an indeterminate idea that a curtain is not a cabbage.
Next, when the curtain rose on full stage, the dogs were trained to make a great barking.
He drew the curtain aside and for some time his frightened, restless eyes could not find the baby.
The curtain rose when we had got her at a red heat.
As the manager of the Performance sits before the curtain on the boards and looks into the Fair, a feeling of profound melancholy comes over him in his survey of the bustling place.
Yes, I perceived that a corner of the curtain in your window had been looped up and fastened to the cornice as I had suggested should be done; and it seemed to me that your dear face was glimmering at the window, and that you were looking at me from out of the darkness of your room, and that you were thinking of me.
They found all the rest of the party already in their seats and the curtain about to go up.
Then the curtain fell, and the audience reposed and ate candy while discussing the merits of the play.
When the curtain at last fell, he burst into the stormiest applause, and kept it up--as did the whole house--until the afflictive tenor had come three times before the curtain to make his bow.
The first sign--and we must remember that he was using his eyes for all they were worth--was an unaccountable movement of the curtain. It was wavy and very slight; just perceptible in fact to the sharpened faculties of a secret watcher; for it can't be denied that our wits are much more alert when engaged in wrong-doing (in which one mustn't be found out) than in a righteous occupation.
Its solid grey stone walls were sea-stained and a trifle worn, but the arched wooden doors leading into the lifeboat shelter, which occupied one side of the building, had been newly painted, and in the front the window was hung with a curtain, now closely drawn, of some dark red material.
"Take care, Monica dear," said one, shrouding herself in the lace curtain; "don't let them see us.