Dictionary

valance en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈvæləns/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From Middle English valance, valans, valaunce, valence, valons. Origin uncertain. Probably from Anglo-Norman valaunce, valence, from valer (“go down, let down”), aphetic form of Old French avaler (“to descend, go down”).

Meanings

1. A short curtain that usually hangs along the top edge of a window.
   • Even the mantelpiece is adorned with a totally unfunctional tasselled valance rather like an altar frontal. 1969, David G. Irwin, The Visual Arts, Taste and Criticism, page 27:
2. A decorative framework used to conceal the curtain mechanism and so on at the top of a window.
3. A short, decorative edging of cloth that hangs from a bed, from beneath the mattress to the floor, used to conceal the box spring or space under the bed and prevent dust from accumulating there.
4. A short, decorative edging of cloth that conceals the legs of a couch, sofa, etc.
   • Mortally insulted, Jasper went under the couch, where he remained with only his nose showing beneath the valance, emitting little world-weary groans at intervals, and refusing to come out for cake. 1938, Norman Lindsay, Age of Consent, 1st Australian edition, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1962, →OCLC, page 145:
5. A low-hanging auto body panel, below a front or rear bumper, whose purpose is aerodynamic and decorative but not structural (often valance panel).
6. The drooping edging of the lid of a trunk, which covers the joint when the lid is closed.

Forms

Deriveds

valanced · valancing · valancelike

Synonyms

dust ruffle (bedding) · bed ruffle (bedding) · bedskirt (bedding)

Translations (12)

fi kappaverho (short curtain on top of a window) · fi helma (short, decorative edging of cloth that conceals the legs of a couch, sofa, etc.) · fi helma (short, decorative edging of a mattress) · fi verholauta (decorative framework used to conceal the curtain mechanism) · fi kappalauta (decorative framework used to conceal the curtain mechanism) · cs záclonka (short curtain on top of a window) · fi helmalakana (short, decorative edging of a mattress) · ru по́лог (short, decorative edging of a mattress) · he וילונית (short curtain on top of a window) · bg драперия (short curtain on top of a window) · ru сваг (short curtain on top of a window) · fi kappa (short curtain on top of a window)