nave

/neɪv/

/neɪv/

Other forms: naves

When a bride walks down the aisle in a church, she is walking down the nave, or central area of the church.

The word nave comes from the Latin navis, meaning "ship." If you think of the central space of a big Gothic church with its high vaulted ceiling, it does kind of form the shape of a ship, doesn't it? The nave is the area where the congregation sits. It's usually rectangular in shape and filled with rows of benches.

Definitions of nave

1. noun

   the central area of a church
   type of:

   area

   a part of a structure having some specific characteristic or function