Meaning & use
glass house
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Meanings
nouncountable
A building with walls and a roof made mostly of glass, especially one used for growing plants.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a glass house' or 'glass houses'.
Patterns
- a glass house
- live in a glass house
The botanical garden has a large glass house full of tropical plants.
They built a glass house in the backyard to protect their tomatoes in winter.
The old glass house was so warm inside that we had to take off our coats.
phraseidiom
Used in the saying 'people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones', meaning you should not criticize others for faults you also have.
Grammar: This is a fixed saying; it is not usually changed.
Patterns
- people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones
You're always late, so don't complain about me being late — people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
She told him to stop judging others, reminding him that people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
Word forms
| plural | glass houses |
|---|
Common combinations
- a glass house
- The garden has a beautiful glass house for exotic flowers.
- live in a glass house
- If you live in a glass house, you shouldn't criticize your neighbors.
- people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones
- He criticized her cooking, but people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones — he can't cook either.
Synonyms and how they differ
- greenhouse
- This is the usual word for a glass building for plants; 'glass house' is more literal and can also refer to any glass building.
Word family
- glasshouse noun
- A British spelling and term for a greenhouse, or a military prison (slang).
Practice
Which sentence uses 'glass house' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Glass house' means a building made of glass, often for plants. The other options confuse it with 'glass' as a material or 'house' in unrelated senses.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “glass house”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.