belfry

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“
In the belfry is a set of tubular chimes.

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Definitions (12)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (3)

  1. noun A bell tower, especially one attached to a building.
  2. noun The part of a tower or steeple in which bells are hung.
  3. Word History
    The words bell and belfry seem obviously related, but in fact the bel- portion of belfry had nothing to do with bells until comparatively recently. Belfry goes back to a compound formed in prehistoric Common Germanic. It is generally agreed that the second part of this compound is the element *frij-, meaning "peace, safety.” The first element is either *bergan, "to protect,” which would yield a compound meaning "a defensive place of shelter,” or *berg-, "a high place,” which would yield a compound meaning "a high place of safety, tower.” Whatever the meaning of the original Germanic source, its Old French descendant berfrei, which first meant "siege tower,” came to mean "watchtower.” Presumably because bells were used in these towers, the word was applied to bell towers as well. The Old North French alteration belfroi, which reminded English speakers of their native word belle (our bell), entered Middle English with the sense "bell tower,” first recorded in 1272.

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Examples (50)

  • Here it will be seen that the height of the windows is increased as they are placed higher up in the building, and the top windows or openings into the belfry are about six times the size of those in the lower story WHAT IS PERSPECTIVE Illustration: Fig. —  The Theory and Practice of Perspective
  • She always spent to great ends, and to mighty uses When she called a shepherd from his flocks in the green valley to build for her a bell-tower so that she might hear, night and morning, the call to the altar, the shepherd built for her in such fashion that the belfry has been the Pharos of Art for five centuries Here is the secret of Florence--supreme aspiration The aspiration which gave her citizens force to live in poverty, and clothe themselves in simplicity, so as to be able to give up their millions of florins to bequeath miracles in stone and metal and colour to the Future. —  Wisdom, Wit, and Pathos of Ouida Selected from the Works of Ouida
  • It is from living in a belfry, doubtless, that I have contracted a habit of looking at things on the dark side; but when one has made allowance for the belfry, the world is not so bad after all. —  'That Very Mab'
  • At the foot of the belfry was an antique building in another style, with a small open colonnade, which, though out of harmony, was still not inappropriate. —  A Day's Tour A Journey through France and Belgium by Calais, Tournay, Orchies, Douai, Arras, Béthune, Lille, Comines, Ypres, Hazebrouck, Berg
  • The space in front of the church was crowded with peasant figures; a bell was swinging backward and forward in the wall-belfry, as though it was trying to turn right over; stall-keepers with cakes, barley-sugar, and other dainties dear to the village child, to whom the opportunity of feasting even his eyes upon such things comes very seldom, were surrounded by eager little faces, and outstretched sunburnt hands, each clutching the sou that offered such a bewildering field for dissipation. —  Wanderings by southern waters, eastern Aquitaine
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Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English belfrei, from Old North French belfroi, alteration of Old French berfrei, berfroi; see bhergh-2 in Indo-European roots.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. Early modern English also belfrey, belfery, belfrie, etc., from Middle English belfray, earlier berfray, berfrey, berfreid, berfreit, from Old French berfrai, berfray, berfrei, berefreit, berfroi, later belfrei, belefreit, belefroi, belfroi, befroi, baffray, etc., modern F. beffroi = Italian battifredo, from Middle Latin berefredus, berefridus, berfredus, with numerous variations, bel-, bil-, bal-, berte-, balte-, bati-, butifredus, from Middle High German bercvrit, bercfrit, berchfrit, berhfride, Middle Dutch bergfert, bergfrede (in sense 1), literally ‘protecting shelter,’ from Old High German bergan, Middle High German G. bergen (= Anglo-Saxon beorgan), cover, protect, + Old High German fridu, Middle High German fride, German friede = Anglo-Saxon frithu, frith, English obsolete frith, peace, security, shelter. The origin of the word was not known, or felt, in Roman, and the forms varied; the Italian battifredo (after Middle Latin batifredus) simulates battere, beat, strike (as an alarm-bell or a clock), and the English form (after Middle Latin belfredus) simulates bell, whence the restriction in modern English to a bell-tower. The same first element also occurs in bainberg and hauberk; the second, with accent, in affray.
 

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/ˈbɛlfri/
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