# pavilion

> English word · Noun · IPA /pəˈvɪljən/ · frequency rank #12,652

## Definitions
1. An ornate tent.
2. A light roofed structure used as a shelter in a public place.
3. A structure, sometimes temporary, erected to house exhibits at a fair, etc.
4. The building where the players change clothes, wait to bat, and eat their meals.
5. A detached or semi-detached building at a hospital or other building complex.
6. The lower surface of a brilliant-cut gemstone, lying between the girdle and collet.
7. The cartiliginous part of the outer ear; auricle.
8. The fimbriated extremity of the Fallopian tube.
9. A flag, ensign, or banner.
10. A flag, ensign, or banner.
11. An ornate tent, used either as a charge or bearing, or surrounding a shield as or atop the mantling.
12. A covering; a canopy; figuratively, the sky.

## Etymology
From Middle English pavilloun, from Anglo-Norman pavilloun, from Latin pāpiliōnem, form of pāpiliō (“butterfly, moth”) (due to resemblance of tent to a butterfly’s wings), of unknown origin. Doublet of papilio and papillon.
Cognate to French pavillon (“pavilion”) and papillon (“butterfly”), and similar terms in other Romance languages.

## Common misspellings (11)
`apvilion`, `paivlion`, `paviilon`, `pavilino`, `pavilionn`, `pavillion`, `paviloin`, `pavliion`, `pavvilion`, `ppavilion`, `pvailion`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/pavilion