cor·nice (kôr'nĭs)
n.

1. 1. A horizontal molded projection that crowns or completes a building or wall.
   2. The uppermost part of an entablature.
2. The molding at the top of the walls of a room, between the walls and ceiling.
3. An ornamental horizontal molding or frame used to conceal rods, picture hooks, or other devices.

tr.v., -niced, -nic·ing, -nic·es.
To supply, decorate, or finish with or as if with a cornice.

[Obsolete French, from Italian, possibly from Latin cornīx, cornīc-, crow, from its resemblance to a crow's beak (influenced by Greek korōnis, curved line, flourish).]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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