COLUMN

column, pillar

(noun) (architecture) a tall vertical cylindrical structure standing upright and used to support a structure

column, pillar

(noun) a vertical cylindrical structure standing alone and not supporting anything (such as a monument)

column, chromatography column

(noun) a vertical glass tube used in column chromatography; a mixture is poured in the top and washed through a stationary substance where components of the mixture are adsorbed selectively to form colored bands

column

(noun) any tubular or pillar-like supporting structure in the body

column

(noun) a page or text that is vertically divided; “the newspaper devoted several columns to the subject”; “the bookkeeper used pages that were divided into columns”

column, editorial, newspaper column

(noun) an article giving opinions or perspectives

column

(noun) a line of units following one after another

column

(noun) a vertical array of numbers or other information; “he added a column of numbers”

column, tower, pillar

(noun) anything that approximates the shape of a column or tower; “the test tube held a column of white powder”; “a tower of dust rose above the horizon”; “a thin pillar of smoke betrayed their campsite”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

column (plural columns)

(architecture) A solid upright structure designed usually to support a larger structure above it, such as a roof or horizontal beam, but sometimes for decoration.

A vertical line of entries in a table, usually read from top to bottom.

A body of troops or army vehicles, usually strung out along a road.

A body of text meant to be read line by line, especially in printed material that has multiple adjacent such on a single page.

A unit of width, especially of advertisements, in a periodical, equivalent to the width of a usual column of text.

(by extension) A recurring feature in a periodical, especially an opinion piece, especially by a single author or small rotating group of authors, or on a single theme.

Something having similar vertical form or structure to the things mentioned above, such as a spinal column.

(botany) The gynostemium

(chemistry) An object used to separate the different components of a liquid or to purify chemical compounds.

Synonyms

• (upright structure): post, pillar, sile

Antonyms

• (line of table entries): row (which is horizontal)

Hypernyms

• (upright structure): beam

Source: Wiktionary

Col"umn, n. Etym: [L. columna, fr. columen, culmen, fr. cellere (used only in comp.), akin to E. excel, and prob. to holm. See Holm, and cf. Colonel.]

1. (Arch.)

Definition: A kind of pillar; a cylindrical or polygonal support for a roof, ceiling, statue, etc., somewhat ornamented, and usually composed of base, shaft, and capital. See Order.

2. Anything resembling, in form or position, a column an architecture; an upright body or mass; a shaft or obelisk; as, a column of air, of water, of mercury, etc. ; the Column Vendôme; the spinal column.

3. (Mil.) (a) A body of troops formed in ranks, one behind the other; -- contradistinguished from line. Compare Ploy, and Deploy. (b) A small army.

4. (Naut.)

Definition: A number of ships so arranged as to follow one another in single or double file or in squadrons; -- in distinction from "line", where they are side by side.

5. (Print.)

Definition: A perpendicular set of lines, not extending across the page, and separated from other matter by a rule or blank space; as, a column in a newspaper.

6. (Arith.)

Definition: A perpendicular line of figures.

7. (Bot.)

Definition: The body formed by the union of the stamens in the Mallow family, or of the stamens and pistil in the orchids. Attached column. See under Attach, v. t.

– Clustered column. See under Cluster, v. t.

– Column rule, a thin strip of brass separating columns of type in the form, and making a line between them in printing.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

COLUMN

Etymology

Noun

Synonyms

Antonyms

Hypernyms

Recent Word Finds

Word of the Day

DECIDE

Do you know this game?