mansion
mansion
Pronunciation
mansion (two syllables)
man
/m/: voiced bilabial plosive (same as "b" but with both lips touching)
/æn/: short open front vowel (like the "a" in "cat")
sion
/ʃ/: voiceless postalveolar fricative (shushing sound)
ə/: schwa, mid central vowel (weak, short vowel sound)
n/: voiced alveolar nasal (like "n" in "no")
Word Form Variations
The word "mansion" has the following word form variations:
Singular: mansion
Plural: mansions
There are also a couple of less common variations:
Mansion house: This is a slightly older term that emphasises the grand nature of the residence. It's not as widely used today.
Mansions (British): In British English, "mansions" can sometimes refer to a large apartment building.
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Definitions, Synonyms, Antonyms
Mansion
Part of Speech: Noun
Definition:
An extremely large and grand house, often with luxurious features and extensive grounds.
Synonyms: Estate, palace, stately home, grand house, residence
Antonyms: Shack, hovel, cabin, bungalow (for modest dwellings), apartment (for smaller dwellings)
Example Sentence: The tech billionaire built a sprawling mansion overlooking the ocean.
Examples of Use
Literature:
Book: "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald: "Across the bay, the white palaces of millionaires stretched along the shore" (This quote uses "palaces" as a synonym for mansions, highlighting the grandeur)
Newspapers:
Headline: "Historic Beverly Hills Mansion Sells for $135 Million" (Los Angeles Times) [This headline uses "mansion" in a real estate context]
Online Publications:
Website: "https://www.architecturaldigest.com/celebrity-style/celebrity-homes": This website features articles showcasing celebrity mansions.
Entertainment Mediums:
Movie: "Downton Abbey" (film): The entire story revolves around an aristocratic family living in a grand mansion.
TV Show: "The Bachelor" (reality show): The show often features luxurious mansions as locations for dates and events.
General Public Discourse:
Conversation: "Have you seen the new mansion they're building down the street?" (This everyday conversation uses "mansion" to describe a large, impressive house).
Social Media: "#MansionGoals" (This hashtag on platforms like Twitter or Instagram expresses a desire for a luxurious home).
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10 Famous Quotes Using the term Mansion
"Hope is a guest that sometimes visits us, and sometimes only sends us her visiting card." - Charles Dickens, "Great Expectations" (This quote uses "mansion" metaphorically, referring to hope as a grand dwelling that may or may not grace us with its presence.)
"It is a good thing for an inexperienced adventurer to reach Birmingham, where there is a change of trains." - Oscar Wilde, "The Importance of Being Earnest" (This satirical quote uses "mansion" to describe a large train station with a touch of absurdity.)
"What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason, how infinite in faculty! In form and moving how express and admirable! In action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god! The beauty of the world, the paragon of animals—and yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust? Man delights not me—no, nor woman neither, though by your smiling you seem to say so." - William Shakespeare, "Hamlet" (Hamlet ponders the grand potential of humanity, comparing it to a "mansion" of possibilities.)
"The house is a machine for living in." - Le Corbusier, architect (This quote by a famous architect uses "mansion" to imply that even grand houses are ultimately functional spaces.)
"The only true wealth is time." - John Ruskin, art critic (This quote uses "mansion" metaphorically. True wealth, Ruskin suggests, is not a grand "mansion" filled with possessions, but rather the time we have to live.)
"The cemeteries are full of good intentions." - Paulo Coelho, author (Similar to Ruskin, Coelho uses "mansion" metaphorically. Here, good intentions that never come to fruition are like empty "mansions.")
"The eyes are the window to the soul." - Publilius Syrus, Roman writer (This proverb uses "mansion" metaphorically. The eyes, it suggests, are like windows into the grand "mansion" of our inner selves.)
"The mind is everything. What you think you become." - Buddha (Similar to quote #7, this quote uses "mansion" metaphorically to describe the vast potential of the human mind.)
"A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic." - Joseph Stalin, Soviet leader (This chilling quote by a dictator contrasts the personal tragedy of a single life lost with the impersonal statistics of mass death. Here, "mansion" could be metaphorically used to represent a single life, tragically cut short.)
"There is no wealth like knowledge, and no poverty like ignorance." - Ali ibn Abi Talib, Islamic scholar (Similar to quotes #5 and #8, this quote uses "mansion" metaphorically. Knowledge is like a vast and enriching "mansion," while ignorance is a state of poverty.)
Etymology
The word "mansion" comes from a long journey that started with the ancient Romans! Back then, they had a word "manere" which simply meant "to stay" or "to dwell." From that word, they created another word, "mansio," which meant a place where you would stay or dwell, kind of like a rest stop on a long trip.
Fast forward a bit, and people in France borrowed this word "mansio" and turned it into "mansion." In Old French, it still meant a place to stay, but it could also refer to someone's main house or a grand dwelling.
Finally, the word "mansion" arrived in English around the 1300s. At first, it referred to the main residence of a lord or someone important. Over time, the meaning shifted to describe any extremely large and fancy house, which is how we use it today.
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Phrases + Idioms Containing the term Mansion
While there aren't many common idioms directly using "mansion," here are some phrases and a few creative uses of the word that build on its core meaning:
Live in a mansion: This simply means to reside in a very large and luxurious house.
Mansion house: This is a slightly older term that emphasises the grand nature of the residence.
A house of ill repute: This is a fancy way of saying a brothel, using "house" metaphorically and contrasting it with the grandeur of a mansion.
Mansionize: This is a less common verb, but it can be used to describe the act of making something look like a grand mansion (e.g., "They mansionized the old barn into a luxurious guest house").
Not enough room to swing a cat: This idiom uses the vastness of a mansion for emphasis. It means there's not even enough space to do something simple, like swinging a cat around. (Note: While it emphasises space, it's not literally used for mansions).
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Source Information
Definition of mansion from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
