Meaning & use
penthouse
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Meanings
nouncountable
An expensive apartment built on the highest floor of a tall building, usually with big windows and outdoor space.
Grammar: Countable: a penthouse, two penthouses. Often used before another noun, as in penthouse suite.
Patterns
- a penthouse in something
- a penthouse overlooking something
The singer bought a penthouse overlooking the river.
From their penthouse, they could see the whole city light up at night.
The hotel keeps its penthouse for guests who pay a very high price.
nouncountabletechnical
A separate small structure or room built on a flat roof, often housing machinery such as elevator equipment.
Grammar: Countable and more technical: the elevator penthouse sits on the roof.
Patterns
- a penthouse on the roof
The engineer climbed into the roof penthouse to check the lift motors.
A small penthouse on top of the warehouse held the air conditioning units.
The architect hid the stairwell inside a glass penthouse.
Word forms
| plural | penthouses |
|---|
Common combinations
- penthouse apartment
- They rent a penthouse apartment downtown.
- penthouse suite
- The honeymooners booked the penthouse suite.
- luxury penthouse
- A luxury penthouse sold for millions last week.
- live in a penthouse
- She dreams of living in a penthouse.
- penthouse view
- The penthouse view stretched to the sea.
Synonyms and how they differ
- top-floor apartment
- Top-floor apartment only says where it is, but penthouse also suggests luxury and size.
- loft
- A loft is usually a converted industrial space with open plan, not necessarily on the highest floor.
- duplex
- A duplex spans two levels and may be anywhere in a building, while a penthouse is defined by its top-level position.
Opposites
Word family
- penthouse suite noun
- the most expensive top-level room in a hotel
- house noun
- the second part of the compound, a building to live in
Commonly confused: penthouse or pent house?
penthouse vs pent house
Writing it as two words is wrong; the word is a single compound, penthouse.
Practice
The tycoon sold his small house and moved into a ___ at the top of a glass tower.
Choose one answer.
A penthouse is a luxury apartment on the top floor, which fits a glass tower. A bungalow or cottage is a separate low house, and a basement is at the bottom.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “penthouse”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.