Meaning & use
aisle
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Meanings
nouncountable
A narrow walkway between rows of seats, shelves, or other things, as in a store, plane, or theater.
Grammar: The s is silent: it sounds like isle.
Patterns
- in the aisle
- down the aisle
The cereal is in aisle five.
She walked down the aisle to find her seat.
Please keep the aisle clear in case of an emergency.
nouncountablereligion
The central path in a church, or the part of a church beside the main central area.
Grammar: Often appears in wedding contexts: walk down the aisle.
Patterns
- walk down the aisle
The bride walked down the aisle in a white dress.
Candles lined each aisle of the old church.
The choir entered through the side aisle.
nounsingularAmericanfigurative
In politics, the division between the two main parties in a legislature, used in phrases such as across the aisle.
Grammar: Mainly used in American political phrases.
Patterns
- across the aisle
- cross the aisle
The bill won support from lawmakers across the aisle.
She is known for working across the aisle.
Several senators crossed the aisle to vote for the plan.
Word forms
| plural | aisles |
|---|
Common combinations
- aisle seat
- I prefer an aisle seat so I can stretch my legs.
- walk down the aisle
- They plan to walk down the aisle in June.
- supermarket aisle
- We found the sauce in the supermarket aisle.
- across the aisle
- Leaders met across the aisle to reach a deal.
- in the aisles
- The audience was dancing in the aisles.
Synonyms and how they differ
- corridor
- A corridor is a passage in a building, usually with rooms off it, rather than between rows.
- passage
- Passage is a general word for any way through, and is less specific than aisle.
- gangway
- Gangway is the British word for an aisle, especially between seats, and also for a ship's ramp.
- walkway
- Walkway can be any path for walking, indoors or out, not only between rows.
Word family
- aisles noun
- plural of aisle
- aisled adjective
- having aisles, as in an aisled church
Commonly confused: aisle or isle? aisle or I'll?
aisle vs isle
Isle is a small island and sounds the same as aisle, but the two are spelled differently and have unrelated meanings.
aisle vs I'll
I'll is the short form of I will and sounds like aisle.
Practice
Which word completes the sentence? "The ___ in the airplane was too narrow for the cart."
Choose one answer.
Aisle means the walkway between seats. Isle is an island, and the other options are homophones with different meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “aisle”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.