sconce
UK/skɒns//skɑns/
sconce noun: a fixture for a light, which holds it and provides a screen against wind or against a naked flame or lightbulb.
Noun (1)
sconce (plural sconces)
- A fixture for a light, which holds it and provides a screen against wind or against a naked flame or lightbulb.
- […]tapers put into lanterns or sconces of several-coloured, oiled paper, that the wind might not annoy them.1644 December 2 (Gregorian calendar), John Evelyn, “[Diary entry for 23 November 1644]”, in William Bray, editor, Memoirs, Illustrative of the Life and Writings of John Evelyn, […], 2nd edition...
- Golden sconces hang not on the walls.1847, John Dryden, The Works of John Dryden in Verse and Prose, volume 1, Harper, The Beginning of the Second Book of Lucretius, page 183, line 28
- A candlestick (holder for a candle, especially a circular tube, with a brim, into which a candle is inserted), either with a handle for carrying, or with a bracket for attaching to a wall.
- Taking the candle […] she stood with the little flat brass sconce in her hand.1858, Mrs. Oliphant, Laird of Norlaw, I. v. 55
- This strange scene was lightd up by candles in high and havy brass sconces.1859, W. Collins, Queen of Hearts, published 1875, page 41
Noun (2)
sconce (plural sconces)
- A head or a skull.
- Novv as I am a Chriſtian anſvver me, / In vvhat ſafe place you haue beſtovv'd my monie; / Or I ſhall breake that merrie ſconce of yours / That ſtands on tricks, vvhen I am vndiſpos'd: / VVhere is the thouſand Markes thou hadſt of me?c. 1594 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Comedie of Errors”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount...
- Why does he suffer this rude knave now, to knock him about the sconce with a dirty shovel, and will not tell him of his action of battery?c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac...
- A poll tax; a mulct or fine.
- I'll gladly pay a sconce2011, Allan Mallinson, On His Majesty's Service
- An act of sconcing (very similar to a fine at Cambridge University, though a sconce is the act of issuing a penalty rather than the penalty itself).
- Near-synonym: (Cambridge University slang) fine
- The table opposite started singing "shit sconce, shit scone^([sic]), shit sconce, shit sconce" […]2014 February 25, James Burns, “Fishing for Sconces”, in funnywomen.com (blog), archived from the original on 27 Jan 2022
Verb (1)
sconce (third-person singular simple present sconces, present participle sconcing, simple past and past participle sconced)
- To impose a fine, a forfeit, or a mulct.
- The Rector sconced him in the buttery-book, but Webberly “wiped it off, with irreverent and unbeseeming language.” For this, he had to apologise, and go without his commons for three months.1898, Rev. A. Clark, University of Oxford, College Histories: Lincoln, page 73
- During a meal or as part of a drinking game, to announce some (usually outrageous) deed such that anyone who has done it must drink (similar to I have never; commonly associated with crewdates; very similar to fining at Cambridge University).
- Near-synonym: (Cambridge University slang) fine
- I sconce anyone who has ever…
- Synonyms:
- fine
Noun (3)
sconce (plural sconces)
- A type of small fort or other fortification, especially as built to defend a pass or ford.
- No sconce or fortress of his raising was ever known either to have been forced, or yielded up, or quitted.1670, John Milton, “(please specify the page)”, in The History of Britain, that Part Especially now Call’d England. […], London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for James Allestry, […] , →OCLC
- A hut for protection and shelter; a stall.
- one that […] must raise a sconce by the highway and sell switchesc. 1613–1616, Francis Beaumont, John Fletcher, “The Scornful Lady, a Comedy”, in Comedies and Tragedies […], London: […] Humphrey Robinson, […], and for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1679, →OCLC...
- A squinch.
- A fragment of a floe of ice.
- Just then, a broad sconce-piece or low water-washed berg came driving up from the southward. The thought flashed upon me of one of our escapes in Melville Bay; and as the sconce moved rapidly close alongside us, McGary managed to plant an anchor on its slope and hold on to it by a whale-line.1856, Elisha Kent Kane, Arctic Explorations
- A fixed seat or shelf.
Verb (2)
sconce (third-person singular simple present sconces, present participle sconcing, simple past and past participle sconced)
sconce meaning in Bengali
sconce in Bengali
- দেয়ালে লাগানো মোমবাতি, প্রদীপাধার
Examples of sconce in a sentence
- Also the candles flickering in the blood-red sconces are black and the body on the crucifix is that of a full-breasted woman.1965, Attila Zohar, Kings Cross Black Magic, Sydney: Horwitz Publications, page 96:
- […] roll the rider and his horse in the dust, or endeavour to drive their lance through the bars of the visor into the bull's eye of their friend's sconce, […]1824, Galignani's magazine and Paris monthly review, page 129:
Synonyms of sconce
Forms of sconce
| Noun | |
|---|---|
| plural | sconces |
| alternative form | skonce |
| Verb | |
| third-person singular present | sconces |
| present participle | sconcing |
| past participle | sconced |
| past | sconced |
Origin of sconce
From Middle English sconce, sconse (“candlestick or lantern (with screen)”), from Old French esconse (“lantern”), from Latin absconsus (“hidden”), perfect passive participle of abscondō (“hide”). Cognate with abscond.
Unclear. Perhaps a use of sconce (“light fixture”) or sconce (“fortification”), but seemingly older than the latter
Borrowed from Middle Dutch schans, cognate with German Schanze.
Words formed from sconce
Words that rhyme with sconce
Questions about sconce
- What does sconce mean?
- Sconce means a fixture for a light, which holds it and provides a screen against wind or against a naked flame or lightbulb.
- What is sconce in Bengali?
- Sconce in Bengali is দেয়ালে লাগানো মোমবাতি, প্রদীপাধার. See Sconce meaning in Bengali.
- How do you use sconce in a sentence?
- Also the candles flickering in the blood-red sconces are black and the body on the crucifix is that of a full-breasted woman.
- What part of speech is sconce?
- Sconce can be a noun or a verb.
- How do you pronounce sconce?
- Sconce is pronounced /skɒns/ (UK).
- What is the plural of sconce?
- The plural of sconce is sconces.
Words near sconce in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: sconce (page history and authors); sconce (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-sconce.ogg.
Cite this entry: “sconce.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sconce. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.