Sill
Sill (sil) , noun
[Old English sille, sylle, Anglo-Saxon syl, syll; akin to German schwelle, Old High German swelli, Icelandic syll, svill, Swedish syll, Danish syld, Gothic gasuljan to lay a foundation, to found.]
The basis or foundation of a thing; especially, a horizontal piece, as a timber, which forms the lower member of a frame, or supports a structure; as, the sills of a house, of a bridge, of a loom, and the like.
(a)
The timber or stone at the foot of a door; the threshold.
(b)
The timber or stone on which a window frame stands; or, the lowest piece in a window frame.
(c)
The floor of a gallery or passage in a mine.
(d)
A piece of timber across the bottom of a canal lock for the gates to shut against.
Collocations (1)
Sill course (Architecture) , a horizontal course of stone, terra cotta, or the like, built into a wall at the level of one or more window sills, these sills often forming part of it.
Sill , noun
[Compare Thill.]
The shaft or thill of a carriage. [Provincial English]
Sill , noun
[Compare 4th Sile.]
A young herring. [English]