What does entrance mean?
An entrance is a door, gate, or other opening through which a person enters a building, room, or enclosed space, and by extension it can mean the act of entering itself — as in making a dramatic entrance at a party. The word is neutral in tone and appears constantly in everyday contexts, from signage reading "Main Entrance" to phrases like "entrance fee" and "entrance exam," which refer to gaining admission to an institution. English also uses "entrance" as a verb meaning to captivate or enchant, as when an audience is entranced by a performance; this figurative sense evokes being transported across a threshold into another state of mind. The noun and verb differ in stress: EN-trance names the doorway, while en-TRANCE means to bewitch. Derived forms include the participial adjectives "entranced" and "entrancing." Versatile, concrete yet capable of metaphor, "entrance" is a staple of both practical and literary English.
A door, gate, passage, or other opening by which a person enters a building, room, or area.
"The main entrance was blocked by construction barriers, so we went around the side."
To fill with wonder and delight; to captivate or charm completely.
"The magician entranced the entire audience with his sleight of hand."
Somewhat literary; the past participle "entranced" and adjective "entrancing" are more common than the bare verb.
Regular plural; typically refers to multiple physical doorways or points of access rather than repeated acts of entering.
"The stadium has several entrances to keep crowds moving smoothly."
The verb "to entrance" and the noun "an entrance" look identical but carry different stress — say EN-trance and you're at the door, say en-TRANCE and someone's been spellbound.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of entrance
"Entrance" comes from Old French "entrer" (to enter), which derives from Latin "intrare," formed on "intra" meaning "within." The noun entered Middle English around the fifteenth century, while the verb sense of captivating someone developed later, in the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century, presumably from the image of being led or carried within — as if spellbound into another realm. It shares this Latin root with "enter," "entry," and, more distantly, words built on "inter-/intra-" such as "interior."
Related word forms
How entrance is actually used
As a noun, "entrance" is neutral in register and common in everyday speech and writing. As a verb, "entrance" is somewhat literary and formal, more often found in written narrative than casual conversation; its participle forms "entranced" and "entrancing" appear more frequently than the bare verb. Note the stress shift between noun and verb, mirroring pairs like "record" and "present."
Easily confused with entrance
"Entry" refers primarily to the act or right of entering or an item recorded in a list, while "entrance" more often denotes the physical doorway or opening itself.