skyscraper
nounUS /ˈskaɪˌskɹeɪpɚ/ · UK /ˈskaɪˌskɹeɪp.ə(ɹ)/
Etymology Compound of sky + scraper, first applied to tall steel-frame buildings in American cities such as New York City and Chicago in the 1880s.
1
Architecture A very tall building with a large number of floors.
- The fact that land is a commodity of unlimited extent in America, together with the now appreciated fact that most high buildings have been economic failures, spell the doom of the skyscraper concept.1872, Pamphlets on Transportation, volume 1, (italics in the original), page 23:
- As the curve of Sandy Hook blotted from sight the last, low glimpse of the skyscrapers which point Manhattan, Blake touched Annette's arm.1910, William Henry Irwin, The House of Mystery:
4 more examples
- The solitary attic—if one could thus designate a space of about three square feet—which comprised Hamar's lodging—had the advantage of being situated in the top storey of a skyscraper—at least a skyscraper for that part of the city.1912, Elliott O'Donnell, The Sorcery Club:
- Then he noticed, as a prosaic business man will notice suddenly, that a skyscraper which he has passed daily for months is out of line with its neighbor, that the seat behind the new little girl was unoccupied and that she stood alone in the aisle during exercises.1917, Herman Gastrell Seely, A Son of the City: A Story of Boy Life:
- The Wards are open-topped, with skyscrapers rising from the superstructure. Towers are sealed against vacuum, as the breathable atmosphere envelope is only maintained to a height of about seven meters. The atmosphere is contained by the centrifugal force of rotation and a "membrane" of dense, colorless sulphur hexafluoride gas, held in place by carefully managed mass effect fields.2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Citadel Station: Wards Codex entry:
- From the ground, Colombo’s port does not look like much.[…] But viewed from high up in one of the growing number of skyscrapers in Sri Lanka’s capital, it is clear that something extraordinary is happening: China is creating a shipping hub just 200 miles from India’s southern tip.2013 June 8, “The new masters and commanders”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, archived from the original on 25 Nov 2020, page 52:
- Skyscraper. A name given to a skysail when it is triangular.[1880, “The West India Pocket Book”, in The West Indies, volume I, London, England, United Kingdom: S. W. Silver & Co., (bold in the original), page 104:
3
Figuratively Anything very tall or high.
- It was no surprise to see Hanley bat a skyscraper out to left.1920, Zane Grey, The Redheaded Outfield and other Baseball Stories:
- Antonyms
- earthscraper, groundscraper
- Derived terms
- Rothscraper, -scraper, skyscrapered, skyscraper heel, skyscraperland, skyscraperless
- Hyponyms
- megatall, plain tall, supertall, tall