variants or less commonly aery
1
: the nest of a bird on a cliff or a mountaintop
2
obsolete : a brood of birds of prey
3
: an elevated often secluded dwelling, structure, or position

Did you know?

English poet John Milton put a variant of aerie to good use in Paradise Lost (1667), writing, "… there the eagle and the stork / On cliffs and cedar tops their eyries build." But Milton wasn't the first to use the term, which comes to us via Medieval Latin and Old French and probably traces to an earlier Latin word, ager, meaning "field." English speakers had been employing aerie as a word for a bird's nest for more than a century when he penned those words. Eventually, aerie was applied to human dwellings as well as birds' nests. At first, this sense referred to dwellings nestled high up in mountains or hills. These days, you're also likely to hear high-rise city apartments or offices referred to as "aeries."

Examples of aerie in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The groups are known as a convocation, an aerie, even a congress. Journal Sentinel, 28 Feb. 2024 The spacious aerie has been on and off the market for several years; despite its significant time spent on the market, the $35 million price tag remains the same. Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 30 Jan. 2024 This was a roofed aerie atop the second deck that curled around the corner of the stadium where home plate stood in the summertime, a reminder that Briggs Stadium was built for baseball, not football — for Tigers, not Lions. Bill Morris, Detroit Free Press, 28 Jan. 2024 Bullard’s third book is a whirlwind tour through their glamorous abodes as well as his own dazzling retreats — a sprawling Hollywood Hills home that once belonged to Dennis Hopper, a mid–century masterpiece in Palm Springs and a modernist aerie on the Baja peninsula overlooking the Sea of Cortez. Abigail Stone, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Nov. 2023 On the market for a cool $30 million, the aerie occupies the 24th and 25th floors of the swanky Manhattan tower. Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 16 Feb. 2024 Complete with a wine room and a stainless-steel circular staircase, the 8,000-square-foot aerie also has a whopping 8,000 square feet of outdoor space. Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 23 Jan. 2024 Once there, visitors may opt for rustic relaxation on a clifftop aerie, from which to take in the unfathomable Aegean after sunrise and a canopy of stars after sunset. Jordan Riefe, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Nov. 2023 In the musical’s first act, a gaggle of wealthy friends shows up at the posh New York aerie of Marianne and Leo (Cannavale) expecting brunch and finding nothing prepared. Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 11 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'aerie.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin airea, aira, eria, Latinization of Old French aire, ere "bird's nest on a rock, family, stock, sort, kind," probably going back to Vulgar Latin *agrum, re-formation of Latin ager "field" — more at acre

First Known Use

circa 1520, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of aerie was circa 1520

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Cite this Entry

“Aerie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aerie. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

aerie

noun
aer·​ie
ˈa(ə)r-ē,
ˈe(ə)r-,
ˈi(ə)r-
1
: the nest of a bird on a cliff or a mountaintop
2
: a dwelling placed high up

More from Merriam-Webster on aerie

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