tile
(taɪl )
Word forms: tiles , tiling , tiled
1. variable noun B2
Tiles are flat, square pieces of baked clay, carpet, cork, or other substance, which are fixed as a covering onto a floor or wall.
Amy's shoes squeaked on the tiles as she walked down the corridor.
The cabins had linoleum tile floors.
...a broken piece of tile.
2. variable noun B2
Tiles are flat pieces of baked clay which are used for covering roofs.
...a fine building, with a neat little porch and ornamental tiles on the roof.
3. verb
When someone tiles a surface such as a roof or floor, they cover it with tiles.
He wants to tile the bathroom. [VERB noun]
The terracotta tiled floor gives the place a wonderfully homely character. [VERB-ed]
-tiled combining form in adjective
...a slate-tiled floor.
...a narrow white-tiled room.
4. See also tiling
5. a night/out on the tiles phrase [noun PHRASE, preposition PHRASE]
If someone has a night on the tiles or is out on the tiles, they go out in the evening, for example to a bar or a club, and do not return home until very late. [British, informal]
Charlotte was dressed for a night on the tiles.
I used to be out on the tiles every night.
Vocabulary Builder
THE KITCHEN sink oven hob microwave spotlight fridge-freezer tap cupboard draining board drawer worktop tiles Collocations:
tiles cover
Garish lime-green tiles cover the walls from ceiling to floor.
Times, Sunday Times
The silica glass fibre tiles cover much of the exterior of each spaceship and protect against the heat of re-entry.
Globe and Mail
Acoustic tiles cover the original plaster ceiling; modern fluorescent lighting and ceiling fans hang from them.
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The areas between the closely studded timber frame are filled in with a mixture of plaster, flint and brickwork, and tiles cover the hipped roof.
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Stone tiles cover the floor.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
Translations:
Chinese: 瓷砖
Japanese: タイル