ceiling

ceiling — noun

1. the flat surface that you see above you when you are inside a room, forming the

1.nounA2
Definition

the flat surface that you see above you when you are inside a room, forming the top part of the space

Example

Leila lay on her bed and stared at the white ceiling.

collocation: white / painted ceiling

The old house had a low wooden ceiling with dark beams across it.

collocation: low / wooden ceiling

Common collocations
  • high ceiling
  • low ceiling
  • white ceiling
  • painted ceiling
  • wooden ceiling
  • ceiling fan
  • ceiling light
  • ceiling tile
Antonyms
  • floor

    the flat lower surface of a room, opposite the ceiling

Usage Note

Often used with adjectives describing height (low, high) or material (wooden, plaster, concrete). A ceiling fan or ceiling light is attached to or hangs from the ceiling.

Common Mistakes

The roof is painted white in the bedroom.' (when inside the room)
The ceiling is painted white in the bedroom.
the ceiling is the inner surface you see when inside; the roof is the outer covering on top of the building.

2. the highest number, amount, or level of something that is officially allowed or

2.nounC2
Definition

the highest number, amount, or level of something that is officially allowed or possible, especially in financial or policy contexts

Example

The government set a ceiling on the amount of rent landlords can charge.

pattern: set a ceiling on [something]

Congress voted to raise the national debt ceiling to avoid a financial crisis.

collocation: debt ceiling

Common collocations
  • debt ceiling
  • price ceiling
  • budget ceiling
  • wage ceiling
  • spending ceiling
  • set a ceiling
  • place a ceiling
  • impose a ceiling
  • raise the ceiling
  • lift the ceiling
  • ceiling on something
Synonyms
  • cap

    more informal and very common in business contexts; a ceiling and a cap are interchangeable when referring to an upper limit on spending or pricing

  • limit

    broader in meaning; a limit can be an upper or lower boundary, while ceiling only refers to an upper boundary

  • upper bound

    more technical and formal, used in mathematics and academic writing

Antonyms
  • floor

    the lowest acceptable level or amount, e.g., a price floor

Grammar Patterns

ceiling + on + noun

ceiling + of + number/amount

Usage Note

Common in government, business, and finance contexts. Frequently paired with set, place, impose, raise, or lift. The preposition on introduces what is limited. A ceiling is an upper bound; there is no common corresponding word for a lower bound in this sense.

Common Mistakes

There is a ceiling for 50 people in the room.' (when talking about physical space)
There is a limit of 50 people in the room.
ceiling as an upper limit is used for amounts, prices, and numbers, not for physical capacity.
The manager raised the ceiling of salaries.
The manager raised the ceiling on salaries.
use on, not of, after ceiling in this sense.
Idioms

glass ceiling

idiom

a situation in which women or members of minority groups are prevented from reaching top positions at work, not by any official rule but by unspoken attitudes or prejudice

Priya was the first woman at the firm to break through the glass ceiling and become a director.

Many companies still have a glass ceiling that keeps qualified women out of senior leadership roles.

hit the ceiling

idiom

to become extremely angry, often with a sudden outburst

When Theo saw the damage to his car, he hit the ceiling.

Dad will hit the ceiling if he finds out we broke his new tablet.

Word family

  • ceilinged
    adjectiveB2
  • ceilingless
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/2

Ceiling, cap, limit, upper bound, and maximum all refer to a point beyond which something cannot go. A ceiling specifically means an upper limit set by authority — you would talk about a debt ceiling or a price ceiling in policy discussions. A cap is a near-synonym that is slightly more informal and very common in business and everyday contexts (a salary cap, a cap on spending). Limit is the broadest term, covering both upper and lower boundaries (speed limit, age limit, time limit). Upper bound is formal and technical, used mainly in mathematics and academic writing. Maximum refers to the greatest possible amount and often describes physical or measurable extremes (maximum temperature, maximum capacity). For financial and policy restrictions, ceiling and cap are the most natural choices.

cap ↗limit ↗upper boundmaximum ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • debt ceiling
  • price ceiling
  • budget ceiling
  • wage ceiling
  • spending ceiling
  • salary ceiling

Phrases

  • set a ceiling on
  • place a ceiling on
  • impose a ceiling on
  • raise the ceiling
  • lift the ceiling
  • hit the ceiling
  • break through the ceiling

Prepositions

  • ceiling of
  • ceiling on
  • under a ceiling
  • above the ceiling
  • below the ceiling

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word ceiling entered English in the 1300s, coming from the Middle English word ancelen, meaning 'to cover or line the inside of a room.' This verb may trace back through Old French to Latin caelum ('sky, heaven'), suggesting that people once thought of the ceiling as a kind of indoor sky above them. The figurative meaning of an upper limit was first recorded in the 1900s.