Till their sojourn in Egypt the Hebrews dwelt in tents. They then for the first time inhabited cities (Genesis 47:3; Exodus 12:7; Hebrews 11:9). From the earliest times the Assyrians and the Canaanites were builders of cities. The Hebrews after the Conquest took possession of the captured cities, and seem to have followed the methods of building that had been pursued by the Canaanites. Reference is made to the stone (1 Kings 7:9; Isaiah 9:10) and marble (1 Chronicles 29:2) used in building, and to the internal wood-work of the houses (1 Kings 6:15; 7:2; 10:11, 12; 2 Chronicles 3:5; Jeremiah 22:14). "Ceiled houses" were such as had beams inlaid in the walls to which wainscotting was fastened (Ezra 6:4; Jeremiah 22:14; Haggai 1:4). "Ivory houses" had the upper parts of the walls adorned with figures in stucco with gold and ivory (1 Kings 22:39; 2 Chronicles 3:6; Psalm 45:8).

The roofs of the dwelling-houses were flat, and are often alluded to in Scripture (2 Samuel 11:2; Isaiah 22:1; Matthew 24:17). Sometimes tents or booths were erected on them (2 Samuel 16:22). They were protected by parapets or low walls (Deuteronomy 22:8). On the house-tops grass sometimes grew (Proverbs 19:13; 27:15; Psalm 129:6, 7). They were used, not only as places of recreation in the evening, but also sometimes as sleeping-places at night (1 Samuel 9:25, 26; 2 Samuel 11:2; 16:22; Dan. 4:29; Job 27:18; Proverbs 21:9), and as places of devotion (Jeremiah 32:29; 19:13).

Noah Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language

1. (n.) A structure intended or used as a habitation or shelter for animals of any kind; but especially, a building or edifice for the habitation of man; a dwelling place, a mansion.

2. (n.) Household affairs; domestic concerns; particularly in the phrase to keep house. See below.

3. (n.) Those who dwell in the same house; a household.

4. (n.) A family of ancestors, descendants, and kindred; a race of persons from the same stock; a tribe; especially, a noble family or an illustrious race; as, the house of Austria; the house of Hanover; the house of Israel.

5. (n.) One of the estates of a kingdom or other government assembled in parliament or legislature; a body of men united in a legislative capacity; as, the House of Lords; the House of Commons; the House of Representatives; also, a quorum of such a body. See Congress, and Parliament.

6. (n.) A firm, or commercial establishment.

7. (n.) A public house; an inn; a hotel.

8. (n.) A twelfth part of the heavens, as divided by six circles intersecting at the north and south points of the horizon, used by astrologers in noting the positions of the heavenly bodies, and casting horoscopes or nativities. The houses were regarded as fixed in respect to the horizon, and numbered from the one at the eastern horizon, called the ascendant, first house, or house of life, downward, or in the direction of the earth's revolution, the stars and planets passing through them in the reverse order every twenty-four hours.

9. (n.) A square on a chessboard, regarded as the proper place of a piece.

10. (n.) An audience; an assembly of hearers, as at a lecture, a theater, etc.; as, a thin or a full house.

11. (n.) The body, as the habitation of the soul.

12. (n.) The grave.

13. (v. t.) To take or put into a house; to shelter under a roof; to cover from the inclemencies of the weather; to protect by covering; as, to house one's family in a comfortable home; to house farming utensils; to house cattle.

14. (v. t.) To drive to a shelter.

15. (v. t.) To admit to residence; to harbor.

16. (v. t.) To deposit and cover, as in the grave.

17. (v. t.) To stow in a safe place; to take down and make safe; as, to house the upper spars.

18. (v. i.) To take shelter or lodging; to abide to dwell; to lodge.

19. (v. i.) To have a position in one of the houses. See House, n., 8.