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The history of "vitrine" is clear as glass. It comes to English by way of the Old French word vitre, meaning "pane of glass," from Latin vitrum, meaning "glass." "Vitrum" has contributed a number of words to the English language besides "vitrine." "Vitreous" ("resembling glass" or "relating to, derived from, or consisting of glass") is the most common of these. "Vitrify" ("to convert or become converted into glass or into a glassy substance by heat and fusion") is another. A much rarer "vitrum" word - and one that also entered English by way of "vitre" - is vitrailed, meaning "fitted with stained glass."
Examples of vitrine in a Sentence
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 18 July 2025
Those traditional, extended glass vitrines that create more of a separation between shoppers and staff are being replaced, and the color palettes of store interiors are changing from dark brown to tourmaline, sunstone and topaz.
—David Moin, Footwear News, 16 June 2025
The black marble facade has been in place ever since, and now includes an unusual oval vitrine displaying eight emblems.
—Kathleen Beckett, New York Times, 20 May 2025
Guitars should be played, not hoarded, or stranded in vitrines.
—Nick Paumgarten, New Yorker, 19 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for vitrine
Cite this Entry
“Vitrine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vitrine. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.
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