noun

• 1The upper interior surface of a room or other similar compartment.

  ‘the books were stacked from floor to ceiling’

  More example sentences

  • ‘Hard landscape materials are the walls, floors and ceilings of our outdoor rooms.’
  • ‘The traditional Scottish tower house has flagstone floors and a vaulted ceiling in the dining room.’
  • ‘The airy rooms had high ceilings; windows and doors opened onto shady verandahs.’
  • ‘Check the level of insulation in your exterior and basement walls, ceilings, attic, floors, and crawl spaces.’
  • ‘It was the only one with a bathroom - a brand new one, all pink - which occupied one third of a cottage with minute rooms, low ceilings, dirt floors, and no windows.’
  • ‘Since it is on the first floor there are high ceilings and the sitting room has elegant, full-length windows overlooking the square.’
  • ‘Since then the bedroom ceiling has collapsed into the room and the bathroom ceiling is coming down on me as well.’
  • ‘And carefully consider each step before you begin ripping into wall and basement ceilings to make room for that second set of pipes.’
  • ‘The rooms, with high ceilings and parquet floors, have been furnished with flair by the owner, Otto Wiesenthal, and are hung with contemporary art from his private collection.’
  • ‘He restored the brickwork, plastering, floors and ceilings room by room.’
  • ‘All surfaces including walls, windows, ceilings, floors and ceramics should be tested.’
  • ‘Do not step through attic floor joists onto the ceiling of the room below.’
  • ‘The side-mounted styles are handy for rooms with low ceilings or limited floor space.’
  • ‘The interconnecting family room has a pine-panelled ceiling, double Velux windows and an Italian tiled floor.’
  • ‘It took on a vaguely human outline and grew until it filled the room ceiling to floor.’
  • ‘The walls, floors and ceilings of the classrooms in the school have been painted with pictures either made by pupils or local artists.’
  • ‘Some people are filled with a sense of freedom and openness when they walk into a large, near-empty room with a high ceiling, high windows and plenty of light.’
  • ‘Set in what looks like a vast wine cellar, the walls and ceilings of the main room are exposed brick, as is the private back room space that holds up to 140 people.’
  • ‘Finally, the attic conversion has added two further rooms with walls and ceilings panelled in white deal.’
  • ‘Both of these rooms have floor to ceiling picture windows as well as garden access.’

  Synonyms

  roof, vault, vaulting

  View synonyms

  1. 1.1An upper limit set on prices, wages, or expenditure.
     ‘the government imposed a wage ceiling of 3 per cent’
     More example sentences

     • ‘But many analysts agree that the new price ceilings won't limit the ability of most power companies to make a profit in the region.’
     • ‘There is no natural ceiling to limit the price of market water.’
     • ‘Also, strict wage ceilings were maintained on public enterprises.’
     • ‘The only problem is that placing a ceiling on wages, although it makes business sense, means United will continue to lag behind Spain and Italy when it comes to paying players.’
     • ‘It's another economic certainty: price ceilings cause a shortage of sellers.’
     • ‘One of the main problems is that Ofcom can only introduce price ceilings for BT because it is the dominant telecoms provider.’
     • ‘But the ceiling on prices does not necessarily mean a crash is inevitable.’
     • ‘The development of an economically viable way to extract oil from oil shale would put a ceiling on oil prices and would extend the oil era by decades.’
     • ‘The 1820s still suffered agricultural depression despite a high ceiling for corn prices in years of poor harvests.’
     • ‘Efforts are underway for establishing a price ceiling in this industry.’
     • ‘Annual price rises would be limited to a ceiling determined by the government in line with inflation and exchange rate considerations.’
     • ‘Government sets price ceilings and floors, dictates wages through laws and labor courts, and confiscates profits.’
     • ‘Other alternatives proposed to the government include setting up a ceiling price on imported rice and applying a special customs inspection, he said.’
     • ‘The commission criticised poor financial management, breaches in employment ceilings and unauthorised expenditure in the health system.’
     • ‘Soon, the ceiling on poll expenditure was increased with necessary amendments to the law.’
     • ‘Hill insisted the England squad would strike if the £20 wage ceiling was not lifted.’
     • ‘By accepting the ceiling on total expenditures, the European Parliament would gain credibility with governments and the electorate.’
     • ‘The bill does not propose to impose a ceiling on the level of interest rates that can be charged by loan companies, which some organisations feel is a mistake.’
     • ‘The doctors began an indefinite strike against CPS's plans to impose a ceiling on the yearly level of reimbursed care.’
     • ‘Fares on some routes would leap to their price ceiling, or 25 per cent above the reference price.’
     Synonyms

     upper limit, maximum, limitation, highest permissible level, highest permissible value

     View synonyms
  2. 1.2The maximum altitude that a particular aircraft can reach.
     ‘the aircraft's quoted ceiling of 24,000 feet’
     More example sentences

     • ‘The new aircraft will also allow pilots to increase their flying hours from 150 to 200 because of the aircraft's higher operating ceiling.’
     • ‘The maximum cruise speed of the aircraft is 500 km per hour and the altitude ceiling 9,500 m.’
     • ‘A number of miles passed under the nose as the aircraft brushed the bottom of the weather ceiling.’
     • ‘This had super-charged engines and had a flying ceiling of 30,000 feet - in excess of what the Douglas could do.’
  3. 1.3The altitude of the base of a cloud layer.
     ‘The cloud ceiling was about 9,000 feet, with a temperature of 62 degrees.’
     More example sentences

     • ‘Observations were not made in rain, snow, or fog, or when the cloud ceiling was less than 100 m AGL.’
     • ‘Unfortunately the dragons can't climb above the cloud ceiling so the five travelers are stuck in the horrid weather.’
     • ‘All the clouds were below 20,000 feet, with broken ceilings and embedded thunderstorms.’
     • ‘Although we had low ceilings and snowfall during our stay, the morning of our departure dawned with only scattered clouds at 25,000 feet.’
     • ‘On the day of the flight, the weather was typical Pacific Northwest: low ceilings, rainy and cool.’
     • ‘The weather ceiling was broken from 1,000 to 3,000 feet and layered above 10,000 feet.’
     • ‘Weather called for low ceilings and light precipitation throughout the morning, so we discussed a backup plan.’
     • ‘The weather was VFR, with visibility at 25 miles and a broken ceiling at 20,000 feet.’
     • ‘The pilot of a single-engine Piper Cherokee flew in marginal VFR conditions when the ceiling suddenly dropped.’
     • ‘A call to the forecasters confirmed weather around the ship was 250-foot ceilings and half-mile visibility.’
     • ‘The forecast called for low ceilings and heavy showers, and for once, the weather-guessers were correct.’
     • ‘North Island Metro said the ceiling wasn't forecast to go any lower than 2,000 feet, with a slim chance of rain in the vicinity.’

• 2Nautical
  The inside planking of a ship's bottom and sides.

  More example sentences

  • ‘Suddenly a thud knocked the shuttle ninety degrees as the crew inside were bashed against the ceiling of the small craft.’