arcade

noun

ar·​cade är-ˈkād 

plural arcades

1

: a long arched building or gallery

2

a

: an arched covered passageway or avenue (as between shops)

b

chiefly British : a building that includes many shops

A job fair … today will introduce locals to the details of the 250 jobs that a new shopping arcade will bring when its doors open this autumn.

—The Journal (Newcastle, England)

3

: a series of arches with their columns or piers

4

: an amusement center having coin-operated games

Examples of arcade in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Just across from the Bell Tower was a video game arcade called The Oz, where hits by Prince and Madonna battled with the waka-waka sounds of PacMan. —Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 18 Dec. 2024

There are also arcades in the finished basements and lofts that house poker tables, board games, and foosball. —Gillian Telling, People.com, 14 Dec. 2024

Released on December 9 in Japan back in 1999, the Dreamcast port of Virtual On Oratorio Tangram was actually better than the arcade version that pre-dated it by a year. —Ollie Barder, Forbes, 10 Dec. 2024

There's a Sea Life aquarium, mini golf, arcades, escape rooms and a psychedelic fun house called Wink World. —Alina Selyukh, NPR, 28 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

French, from Italian arcata, from arco arch, from Latin arcus

First Known Use

1685, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing arcade

• amusement arcade
• arcade game
• penny arcade
• video arcade

Kids Definition

arcade

noun

ar·​cade är-ˈkād 

1

: a row of arches with the columns that support them

2

: an arched or covered passageway (as between shops)

3

: a place with many games to be played by putting coins or tokens in them

Medical Definition

arcade

noun

ar·​cade är-ˈkād 

1

: an anatomical structure comprising a series of arches

2

: dental arch