Loft means to hit or throw something high into the air in a gentle arc. A soccer player might loft the ball over defenders' heads to a teammate downfield. In baseball, an outfielder might loft a throw toward home plate. The word suggests a smooth, floating path rather than a hard, straight line.

A loft is also a large, open space, usually on an upper floor of a building. Artists often work in lofts because the high ceilings and wide-open rooms give them plenty of space for big canvases or sculptures. Some people live in loft apartments, which have few interior walls dividing the space. The word can also describe the upper level of a barn where hay is stored, or even an upper area in a house, like a sleeping loft tucked under a cabin's peaked roof.

Both meanings share a sense of height, whether you're launching a ball upward or climbing stairs to a high, airy room.