curtain

curtain

Panel of decorative fabric hung to regulate the admission of light at a window and to prevent drafts. Curtains made of a heavy material, arranged to fall in ornamental folds to the floor, are called draperies. Mosaics from the 2nd–6th century show curtains suspended from rods spanning arches. From the Middle Ages to the 19th century, curtains ranged in style from simple to ornamented; beds were often curtained on all sides. In the 20th century, synthetic fabrics and mechanical devices for opening and closing curtains simplified their installation and use.

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curtain

1. a hanging cloth or similar barrier for concealing all or part of a theatre stage from the audience

2. the end of a scene of a play, opera, etc., marked by the fall or closing of the curtain

3. the rise or opening of the curtain at the start of a performance

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curtain [′kərt·ən]

(geology)

A thin sheet of dripstone that hangs or projects from a cave wall.

A rock formation connecting two adjacent bastions.

(nucleonics)

A thin shield, usually cadmium, used in a nuclear reactor to shut off a flow of slow neutrons.