An Arcade Is a Row of Arches
An arcade is a covered walkway lined with shops. The name describes the architecture, and video games inherited it by accident of address.
An arcade is a covered passage lined with arches, and by extension a shopping street under a roof. The video game sense arrived because coin-operated machines were installed in exactly such places: penny arcades and amusement arcades. The word describes a building, and the games took the name of the room they stood in.
- A covered walkway with arches. *A shopping arcade.*
- A games venue. *An amusement arcade.*
- A series of arches. *A blind arcade.*
- Arcade game — a coin-operated machine. *A classic arcade game.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | arcade | A Victorian arcade. |
| Plural | arcades | Covered arcades. |
| Related | arch | A pointed arch. |
| Related | colonnade | A stone colonnade. |
| Compound | arcade game | Arcade game cabinets. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The arcade runs between the two streets.Architecture.
- Seaside arcades are full of machines.Amusements.
- A blind arcade is purely decorative.Arches against a solid wall.
Covered walkways
- Arcade — arches on one or both sides
- Colonnade — a row of columns carrying a flat roof
- Cloister — a covered walk around a courtyard
- Portico — a porch with columns
- Loggia — a gallery open on one side
From French *arcade*, from Italian *arcata*, an arched structure, from Latin *arcus*, a bow or arch — the same root as *arc* and *archery*.
Why are video games called arcade games?
Because the machines were installed in amusement arcades. The name of the venue transferred to the machines and the style of game.
Arcade or colonnade?
An arcade carries arches; a colonnade carries a straight entablature on columns.