CEILING, participle present tense Covering the top of a room or building. CEILING, noun 1. The covering which overlays the inner roof of a building, or the timbers which form the top of a room. This covering may be of boards, or of lath and plastering. Hence ceiling is used for the upper part of a room. 2. In ship building, the inside planks of a ship.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI