full house

noun

plural full houses
1
: a poker hand containing three of a kind and a pair see poker illustration
2
: a theater, concert hall, etc. that is completely filled with spectators
Nevertheless, Into Great Silence played to a full house for two months at one of the city's hippest independent movie theaters.Michael Boudway

Examples of full house in a Sentence

a singer performing before a full house A hand with three kings and two tens is a full house.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
On March 13, the Rancho Santa Fe Foundation convened a full house of fundholders at the Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club for the inaugural session of its three-part series on homelessness prevention. News Release, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Mar. 2025 The first separates how close teams are to playing to a full house on a nightly basis so far this season. Hailey Salvian, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025 Some 30 people are gathered for the early listening event at 7:30 p.m., with another full house expected for the 9:30 p.m. nightcap. Jim Harrington, The Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2025 Capacity dipped slightly to 92 percent from the full house during its first three performances. Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for full house

Word History

First Known Use

1701, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of full house was in 1701

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Cite this Entry

“Full house.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/full%20house. Accessed 10 Apr. 2025.

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