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Meaning of ceil in English:

ceil

Pronunciation /siːl/

verb

[with object]archaic

  • Line or plaster the roof of (a building)

    ‘the nave has been ceiled in wood’
    • ‘Following the two down a neat, gravel path, up a set of wide steps, and, after taking a deep breath, I went through the French doors into a marble-tiled, high ceiled sage hallway.’
    • ‘There is as much misery riding and driving about in carriages as there is walking about on foot: there is as much unhappiness in ceiled houses as in humble cottages.’
    roof, vault, vaulting

Origin

Late Middle English (in the sense ‘line the interior of a room with plaster or panelling’): perhaps related to Latin celare, French céler ‘conceal’.