aisle Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a long narrow passage (as in a cave or woods)
  2. noun passageway between seating areas as in an auditorium or passenger vehicle or between areas of shelves of goods as in stores
    gangway.
  3. noun part of a church divided laterally from the nave proper by rows of pillars or columns

WordNet

Aisle noun
Etymology
OF. ele, F. aile, wing, wing of a building, L. ala, contr. fr. axilla.
Definitions
  1. (Arch.) (a) A lateral division of a building, separated from the middle part, called the nave, by a row of columns or piers, which support the roof or an upper wall containing windows, called the clearstory wall. (b) Improperly used also for the have; -- as in the phrases, a church with three aisles, the middle aisle. (c) Also (perhaps from confusion with alley), a passage into which the pews of a church open.

Webster 1913