palace

/ˈpæləs/

/ˈpæləs/

Other forms: palaces

A palace is a beautiful, large house where someone important, like a king, lives.

Have you ever seen Buckingham Palace? That's where the Queen of England lives, and it's an enormous, ornate, heavily guarded building, which is typical of palaces. Palaces are lavish and over-the-top, because they are usually the home of a ruler such as a king, queen, or dictator. If you don’t live like a king, take comfort in this quote from the English poet John Donne: “Be thine own palace, or the world’s thy jail.”

Definitions of palace

1. noun

   official residence of an exalted person (as a sovereign)
   examples:

   Alhambra

   a fortified Moorish palace built near Granada by Muslim kings in the Middle Ages

   Lateran Palace

   a palace that served as the residence of the popes until the 14th century

   Tuileries Palace

   palace and royal residence built for Catherine de Medicis in 1564 and burned down in 1871; all that remains today are the formal gardens

   Palace of Versailles

   a palace built in the 17th century for Louis XIV southwest of Paris near the city of Versailles

   types:

   alcazar

   any of various Spanish fortresses or palaces built by the Moors

   type of:

   residence

   the official house or establishment of an important person (as a sovereign or president)
2. noun

   a large and stately mansion
   synonyms: castle

   examples:

   Buckingham Palace

   the London residence of the British sovereign

   type of:

   hall, manse, mansion, mansion house, residence

   a large and imposing house
3. noun

   a large ornate exhibition hall
   type of:

   exhibition area, exhibition hall

   a large hall for holding exhibitions
4. noun

   the governing group of a kingdom
   “the palace issued an order binding on all subjects”

   type of:

   authorities, government, regime

   the organization that is the governing authority of a political unit