Ceiling or sealing?
ceiling is a noun meaning “The overhead closure of a room”; sealing is an adjective meaning “Used for closing securely”. Use ceiling as a noun and sealing as an adjective (sealing is also a noun: “Action of the verb to seal in any sense”). They sound the same (/ˈsiːlɪŋ/). In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) ceiling is about 5.0 times as common as sealing.
What is the difference between ceiling and sealing?
| ceiling | sealing | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun, verb | adjective, noun, verb |
| Meaning | The overhead closure of a room The upper limit of an object or action | Used for closing securely Action of the verb to seal in any sense Hunting of seals (the animals) |
| Example | The dining room had an ornate ceiling | none recorded |
| Forms | ceilings | none |
| Pronunciation | /ˈsiːlɪŋ/ /ˈsilɪŋ/ | /ˈsiːlɪŋ/ |
| In writing | 15 times per million words | 3.0 times per million words |
Sources: ceiling and sealing in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of ceiling and sealing
ceiling
- 1
The overhead closure of a room
The dining room had an ornate ceiling
- 2
The upper limit of an object or action
- 3
The highest altitude at which an aircraft can safely maintain flight
- 4
The measurement of visible distance from ground or sea level to an overcast cloud cover; under a clear sky, the ceiling measurement is identified as "unlimited."
Even though it was cloudy, there was still enough ceiling for the Blue Angels to perform a great show
- 5
The smallest integer greater than or equal to a given number
The ceiling of 4.5 is 5; the ceiling of −4.5 is −4
- 6
The inner planking of a vessel
- 7
The maximum permitted level in a financial transaction
- 8
The overhead interior surface that covers the upper limits of a room
sealing
- 1
Used for closing securely
- 2
Action of the verb to seal in any sense
- 3
Hunting of seals (the animals)
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, ceiling or sealing?
ceiling appears 15 times per million words; sealing 3.0 times per million words.
ceiling 15 times per million wordssealing 3.0 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).