curtain

 Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++朗文当代英语 5++LDOCE 5++朗文 5++

Related topics: Household, Theatre

cur·tain1 /ˈkɜːtn $ ˈkɜːrtn/ ●●● S3 W3 noun [countable]  1  DHa piece of hanging cloth that can be pulled across to cover a window, divide a room etc 窗帘；门帘；帘子 red velvet curtains 红色的丝绒窗帘draw/close/pull the curtains Ella drew the curtains and switched the light on. 埃拉拉上窗帘，把灯打开。draw back/open the curtains Shall I open the curtains? 我把窗帘拉开好不好？curtain rail/pole/rod (=for hanging a curtain on) 窗帘杆2  APTa sheet of heavy material that comes down at the front of the stage in a theatre 〔舞台上的〕幕，帷幕the curtain goes up/rises Before the curtain went up, the dancers took their places on stage. 幕拉起之前，舞蹈演员都在舞台上站好了位置。the curtain comes down/falls 幕布落下/降下 →5 see picture at 见图 theatre3  HIDE/MAKE IT HARD TO FIND OR SEE written a thick layer of something that stops anything behind it from being seen 〔遮住视线的〕幕状物，帘状物curtain of a curtain of smoke 烟幕4  bring down the curtain on something informalFINISH/COME TO AN END to cause or mark the end of a situation or period of time 使某事落下帷幕，为某事画上句号 The decision brought down the curtain on a 30-year career. 这一决定为30年的职业生涯画上了句号。5. (it’ll) be curtains for somebody/something informalFINISH/COME TO AN END used to say that someone will die or that something will end 某人该完蛋了/某事该结束了n COLLOCATIONSverbsdraw/close/pull the curtains (=close them)The room was dark because the curtains were drawn.open/draw (back)/pull back the curtains (=open them)Would you mind opening the curtains?curtains hangBright red curtains hung cheerfully at all the windows.put up/hang curtains (=fix new curtains at a window )She was standing on a ladder hanging some new curtains.ADJECTIVES/NOUN + curtain heavy/thick curtains (=made of thick material)Heavy curtains help to keep the house warm.velvet/net/lace etc curtains (=made of velvet, net etc)a shower curtain (=for keeping the water in the shower)curtain + NOUNa curtain rail/pole/rod (=a long stick for hanging a curtain)Velvet can be heavy so choose a strong curtain pole.curtain fabric/material (=for making curtains)I need to go to town to buy some curtain fabric.curtain hooks (=for attaching curtains to a rail)The curtain has loops, so you don't need curtain hooks.

Examples from the Corpus

curtain• A dense curtain of fog caused traffic problems.• In the drapery room, for example, the formations hang from the ceiling like curtains.• There was a filthy shroud of cobweb across it, but no curtain beyond.• It is available in three depths to suit all lengths of curtain.• a shower curtain• In the corner of the room is a large bed hung with a dark musty surrounding curtain.• Before the curtain went up, the dancers took their places on the stage.• A breeze blows the white curtains in on either side of her, two ghostly arms embracing her.draw/close/pull the curtains• When I catch Grandmother thinking in this fashion I shy away and draw the curtains, lest I smile.• When she stopped having accidents, she would withdraw into her room and draw the curtains and complain of headache.• Callie drew the curtains with a soapy hand, but even so the light washed everything out.• Sir George drew the curtains, and motioned Roland and Maud to sit down by the fire, in the velvet chairs.• I closed the curtains around the bed, and felt safe from Heathcliff and everyone else at Wuthering Heights.• I was going to draw the curtains, upstairs in the bedroom about ten minutes after you dropped me off here.• He had scarcely had time to draw the curtains when there was a small, familiar tap at the door.• Other days, she would draw the curtains in their room and lie in bed with a cloth pressed to her forehead.the curtain goes up/rises• But once this glitzy transformation scene is set and the curtain goes up, there is a problem.• A certain tension is present, like the atmosphere in a theater just before the curtain goes up.• They give them about an hour there before the curtain goes up.• Even in the opera the Passacaglia ends not when the curtain goes up but when it comes down.curtain2 verb  1 curtain something ↔ off phrasal verb to separate one area, room etc from another by hanging a curtain between them 用帘子隔开 The room was curtained off by red drapes. 这个房间被红帘子隔开了。→ See Verb table

Examples from the Corpus

curtain• The windows were curtained in heavy velvet.• Spread throughout the pond, seven pale piles of limbs, bared teeth, faces curtained off by their hair.• Behind him, the windows were curtained with white cotton, receding on a brass bar into the corner.Origin curtain (1200-1300) Old French curtine, from Late Latin cortina, from Latin cohors “enclosure, court”; → COHORT

cur·tain1 noun →n COLLOCATIONS1curtain2 verbLDOCE OnlineChineseSyllable  

piece a across be Corpus cloth pulled that can hanging of

curtain

I

cur‧tain¹ S3 W3 /ˈkɜːtn $ ˈkɜːrtn/ noun [countable]1. a piece of hanging cloth that can be pulled across to cover a window, divide a room etc:
    red velvet curtains
    draw/close/pull the curtains
    Ella drew the curtains and switched the light on.
    draw back/open the curtains
    Shall I open the curtains?
    curtain rail/pole/rod (=for hanging a curtain on)
2. a sheet of heavy material that comes down at the front of the stage in a theatre
    the curtain goes up/rises
    Before the curtain went up, the dancers took their places on stage.
    the curtain comes down/falls
3. written a thick layer of something that stops anything behind it from being seen
    curtain of
    a curtain of smoke
4. bring down the curtain on something informal to cause or mark the end of a situation or period of time:
    The decision brought down the curtain on a 30-year career.
5. (it’ll) be curtains for somebody/something informal used to say that someone will die or that something will end
     

COLLOCATIONS

■ verbs
   ▪ draw/close/pull the curtains (=close them) The room was dark because the curtains were drawn.
   ▪ open/draw (back)/pull back the curtains (=open them) Would you mind opening the curtains?
   ▪ curtains hang Bright red curtains hung cheerfully at all the windows.
   ▪ put up/hang curtains (=fix new curtains at a window ) She was standing on a ladder hanging some new curtains.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + curtain
   ▪ heavy/thick curtains (=made of thick material) Heavy curtains help to keep the house warm.
   ▪ velvet/net/lace etc curtains (=made of velvet, net etc)
   ▪ a shower curtain (=for keeping the water in the shower)
■ curtain + NOUN
   ▪ a curtain rail/pole/rod (=a long stick for hanging a curtain) Velvet can be heavy so choose a strong curtain pole.
   ▪ curtain fabric/material (=for making curtains) I need to go to town to buy some curtain fabric.
   ▪ curtain hooks (=for attaching curtains to a rail) The curtain has loops, so you don't need curtain hooks.

II

curtain² verb
     
curtain something ↔ off phrasal verb
  to separate one area, room etc from another by hanging a curtain between them:
    The room was curtained off by red drapes.